MALTA v ROMANIA
European Championship
Monday 10th June 2019
Kickoff: 1945hrs
Pick: Malta AH+2.25
Bookmaker: Unibet
Odds: 1.54 (odds taken at 02:47 GMT, 10 June 2019)
In Group F, Malta seemingly face the impossible when they play host to Romania as the betting tips continue on Monday night at the Ta’Qali National Stadium as the home side look to take something from this clash against their more illustrious opponents, Romania.
European Championship at Unibet
Malta – Can Malta avoid a heavy defeat?
Malta find themselves in the slightly surprising position of mid-table in Group F prior to their Monday night clash with Romania which is solely thanks to their opening group match win over Faroe Islands at their Ta’Qali National Stadium which got their Euro 2020 campaign off to a dream start.
However, inevitable defeats to Spain 2-0 at home and a 3-0 loss away at Sweden brought Malta crashing back down to earth and the grim reality of international football, although they do hold home advantage once again for this upcoming encounter against Romania.
The reality surrounding nations such as Malta are that defeats are always likely to be prominent, but slow and sure progress perhaps ensures they avoid heavy defeats; the hosts have secured additional points in draws with Azerbaijan and Faroe Islands in the recent Nations League and although they lost to Spain last time out on home turf, they limited the scoreline to a creditable 2-0 loss to the former World Cup and European champions.
This latter result will give Malta belief that they might just be able to grab a point here, and although defeat looks fairly likely, they may well be able to cover the asian handicap line in this clash.
Malta have lost by 3 goals or more in just 4 of their last 17 matches at home.
Romania Prediction – Can Romania challenge Sweden for 2nd place?
Onto Romania, and the visitors will be eyeing off an all important three points here on Monday night against one of the weaker teams in Group F, Malta, as they look to continue their recovery in these Euro 2020 qualifiers.
Romania were handed a 2-1 defeat away in Sweden to get their campaign off to the worst possible start, but they’ve since bounced back with a heavy 4-1 defeat at home over the Faroe islands followed by a solid point in a 2-2 draw away at Norway.
Romania will therefore be confident that they can keep this recent momentum going against Malta even though they’ve never played their hosts before in any international match beforehand.
The visitors bring a solid looking sequence of just 1 defeat out of their last 7 matches on their travels which was the 2-1 loss at Sweden but wins at Israel, Lithuania and Montenegro will give them a boost ahead of this trip.
However, in terms of beating the asian line here, Romania have won by 3 goals or more in just 3 of their last 71 away matches in all competitions, so a heavy defeat upon Malta is by no means guaranteed here.
Key-Facts – Malta v Romania
- Malta have lost by 3 goals or more in just 4 of their last 17 matches at home
- Romania have won by 3 goals or more in just 3 of their last 71 away matches
- These two teams have net met before on the international stage
Betting Tips Verdict
Malta have a glimmer of hope here, but they stand a good chance of avoiding a heavy defeat at least.
