Montenegro host Romania in their opening Group B3 fixture of the UEFA Nations League. The Romanians have looked slightly better than the hosts and will be confident of claiming the upper hand on Saturday.
Montenegro are playing in the second tier of the UEFA Nations League after enjoying a fine campaign in the previous edition of the competition. They suffered just one defeat in Group C3 to finish top of the standings and gain promotion to League B.
The problem for Montenegro is that they have struggled to find their best form lately with just two wins from their last 10 matches across all competitions. One of those wins was a 1-0 victory over Greece in a friendly back in March.
Montenegro have also found things difficult at home lately with the victory over Greece their only win in the last five matches in front of their fans. However, among their results in that run is a 2-2 draw with Netherlands while they were also held 0-0 by Latvia.
It was a mixed campaign for Romania in the previous edition of the UNL as they claimed two wins and as many draws and defeats from six matches. They finished third on their standings which was enough to see them maintain their status in League B.
The Romanians have fared a bit better than Montenegro with just one defeat from their last five matches. Edward Iordanescu’s men have claimed two wins and as many draws from the other four matches.
Romania’s last international outing was a 2-2 draw in Israel which highlights a decent record on the road. Their only defeat in their last five away matches was a 2-1 loss to Germany in a World Cup qualifying fixture back in October.
How the bookies view it
Romania have the edge among the bookies and are priced at 13/9 by SBK to claim the win on Saturday. A victory for Montenegro is valued at 11/5 by SBK while a draw is set at odds of 21/10 by BoyleSports.
Head to head
Romania have a 2-1 edge with two draws from five previous matches with Montenegro. The Romanians were unbeaten when both teams met in the UNL in 2018, playing out a 0-0 draw at home before earning a 1-0 victory in the reverse fixture in Montenegro.
Players to watch
Stevan Jovetic is often in and out of the Montenegro squad due to injuries but is part of the team for this round of matches. The forward is usually the go-to-man for the hosts when he plays and is priced at 9/4 by Paddy Power to get on the score sheet on Saturday.
In the absence of Ianis Hagi and Claudiu Kaseru, Romania will be looking to George Puscas to provide the spark in attack. The forward is expected to lead the line on Saturday and is priced at 12/5 by Paddy Power to find the net.
Anything else catch the eye?
One problem that has plagued Montenegro and Romania alike is a lack of discipline at the back which means both teams could be backed to score at 11/10 with bet365. Over 2.5 goals could also be considered at 13/8 with William Hill while over 3.5 goals is valued at 22/5 by BetVictor.
Romania have opened the scoring in four of their last five away matches and could be tipped to grab the first goal on Saturday at 20/21 with BoyleSports.
This UEFA Nations League match between Montenegro and Romania will be played on Jun 4, 2022 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Montenegro vs Romania prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.