Lukaku's unpredictable group: 4 teams tied on points after the group stage

After the second round of matches, all teams in Group E of EURO 2024 have 3 points. This has a very high possibility of leading to a rare outcome: all 4 teams in this group will have 4 points after the group stage ends.

Currently, Romania is at the top of Group E, followed by Belgium, Slovakia and Ukraine. However, the rankings of these teams are only determined by goal difference, because their points are currently completely equal: each team has 3 points. These 4 teams have won each other back and forth, so the results of their direct confrontations are no longer important, goal difference is the most important factor when ranking the 4 teams in Group E. The fact that the teams in this group have the same 3 points, 1 win and 1 loss after 2 matches reflects 2 things. First, the strength of each team Romania, Belgium, Slovakia and Ukraine is too balanced. Second, all the teams in Group E are… unstable. They can play well in the previous match but play poorly in the next match and vice versa.

The situation in Group E is very unpredictable.

UEFA

The chance to continue is still there for all 4 teams.

REUTERS

For example, the Belgian team, which has many world-class stars such as Kevin De Bruyne, Lukaku, Jan Vertonghen, Thomas Meunier... but stability is something quite luxurious for this team that once held the number 1 position on the FIFA rankings. Stability is also a big problem for Lukaku. On a good day, this star can "plow through" any defense, but more than once, he missed a shot in front of an... empty goal. Or with Ukraine, the performance of this team depends largely on spirit. When Ukraine was excited, coach Serhiy Rebrov's players played like they were weaving brocade and embroidery, striker Roman Yaremchuk could score an impromptu goal against Slovakia, as if recreating the masterpiece of former player Dennis Bergkamp (Netherlands) against Argentina in the quarter-finals of the 1998 World Cup. However, when there was no excitement, Ukraine lost very quickly to Romania in the first match (0-3), with all 3 goals conceded before the 60th minute, meaning that less than 2/3 of the match was over and there was no possibility of turning the tables.

The Belgian team played very well and was very scary.

REUTERS

The same thing happened with the Ukrainian players.

REUTERS

The fact that the teams in Group E are not very different in strength and are inconsistent makes a rare situation possible in this group in the final round on June 26. That situation is that all 4 teams in Group E have 4 points, if Slovakia draws Romania and Ukraine draws Belgium. Throughout the history of 16 EURO tournaments from 1960 to the present, there has never been a phenomenon of all teams in a group having the same number of points when the group stage ends (except in the first 5 tournaments from 1960 to 1976, EURO did not have a group stage, the teams played in a knockout format). If this happens, Ukraine will be the last team in Group E, but they may also be the only team eliminated in this group. The remaining 3 teams ranked from 3rd to 1st in Group E will have tickets to the next round, including the 2 group leaders who will have tickets to the knockout round directly, and the 3rd team in the group of 4 third-placed teams with the best results in the 6 groups, who will receive a play-off ticket. Since the EURO finals were expanded to 24 teams in 2016, there has never been a case of a team with 4 points being eliminated after the group stage.

Thanhnien.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/hy-huu-bang-dau-kho-luong-cua-lukaku-4-doi-dong-loat-bang-diem-sau-vong-bang-185240623151636245.htm