Euro 2020: Can Romania Ruin the Swedish Party?

Sweden vs Romania

It’s easy to say that Group F of the Euro 2020 qualifiers is a rather easy group for a superb footballing nation like Sweden.

The only real opponents the Swedes have in this group are Spain, and they won’t be facing La Roja until June, so there’s plenty of games for the Blue-Yellows to establish their position in the table. Given the wealth of talent available for Janne Andersson, this feat is more than possible.

Their first opponents in Group F are Romania and plenty of Euro 2020 betting odds for this match point for an easy victory for the Swedes. However, I will warn casual football fans about the Tricolorii.

I’d compare this team to furniture from IKEA: they may seem easy to solve, but Cosmin Contra’s men could well be too complicated for them to figure out come game time. After all, a game isn’t decided until the final whistle is blown.

Join me as we take a look into this seemingly one-sided battle.

Talking Points

A weakened Sweden head to battle

The Swedes had a fantastic time in Russia. A team once thought to be nothing without the confident Zlatan Ibrahimovic made the World Cup ahead of a heartbroken Netherlands team by goal difference. They then showed up in the group stages in Russia but were taken down by Switzerland in the round of 16.

They then headed to the UEFA Nations League with all the confidence in the world. They proved their worth by damning Turkey to play in League C and completely overwhelming World Cup hosts Russia in a classy rout.

Any reasonable football fan will be looking forward to another great display from the Blue-Yellows as they are second-favourites to make it out of their group. However, some interesting Euro 2020 news related to the qualifying stages may affect their start to their qualification campaign.

Victor Lindelof will not be suiting up for this match and the subsequent game against Norway. Rumours circulated that John Guidetti’s omission from the team prompted the Manchester United defender’s withdrawal, but Andersson insisted that his reasons were of a personal nature.

Without their key defender, the Blue-Yellows may have to tighten up their game. However, they do have the personnel to make it work.

Emil Forsberg is a key man in Sweden and RB Leipzig. The midfield maestro (who also showcased his American football chops recently) should become a thorn in Romania’s side. Ludwig Augustinsson, Mikael Lustig, Viktor Claesson, and Marcus Berg should also be able to step up.

Again, there should be no reason for a team like this to drop points against Romania.

Tricolorii on the hunt for an upset

Contra knows coming into the match that they will be the heavy underdogs, and he will definitely not mince words with his lads that they will be in for a long 90 minutes if they don’t play properly.

To the untrained eye, it does seem like Romania are fish out of the water by the time they visit the Friends Arena in Solna. There aren’t any names in the squads Romania fielded in the Nations League that stand out, and their second-place finish in League C’s Group  4 will convince a lot of people to bet against them.

However, it is important to note that the Tricolorii didn’t lose a single game they played in the Nations League. They gave Serbia a good fight up to the end, beating Montenegro on the final day, on their own soil.

There are also a good number of Romanian players to watch out for. Nicolae Stanciu, Alexandru Chipciu, George Tucudean, and Cristian Manea are noteworthy players fans should watch out for come game time.

History

Sweden and Romania have faced each other a total of six times. The first time they met was during the 1984 Euro qualifiers. The tables were flipped then: Romania dominated the Swedes as they got an aggregate score of 3-0. The next game was a draw, and the other two were won by Sweden.

The last time they met was almost a year ago when Romania hosted Sweden for the latter’s tune-up game for the World Cup. They one-upped their Russia-bound guests as  Dorin Rotariu scored the only goal in a surprise 1-0 upset.

Betting Tip

	Sweden vs Romania	Over 2.25 Goals @ 2.21
	March 24, 01:00(GMT+8)

Our inspection of the curious footballing history between the two sides helps us understand why a top online bookmaker like SBOBET gave such intriguing Euro 2020 betting odds for a team of Sweden’s stature.

Romania seem to have the Swede’s number and can play some great football whenever they match up. If the Tricolorii are indeed the Blue-Yellows’ bogey team, then it is understandable why a one-goal handicap for Sweden fetches an insane 2.66.

I still think the Swedes will bring home the bacon here, but I expect Romania to fight back and finish the game with a respectable 2-1 result. Sweden’s outstanding World Cup and Nations League runs should give them the confidence to face their opponents with the confidence necessary to succeed.

A SHORT EXPLANATION ON HOW OUR () BETS ARE WORTH:
= €20 (Highly confident)	= €10 (CONFIDENT)	= €5 (SOMEWHAT CONFIDENT)

Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.

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