In a world where the gap between the haves and have nots is gaping, football stands as one of few remaining meritocracies. Hard work and dedication can still get you to the very top, Romania’s impressive Euro 2024 campaign is proof of that.
By Alex Roberts
It’s been a while since Romania have played at a major tournament. They used to be a semi-permanent fixture, who could forget when their whole team, led by the great Gheorghe Hagi, dyed their hair semi-permanent blonde at the 1998 World Cup.
Hagi is a national hero back in Romania, widely regarded as the greatest player the country has ever produced. In the most obvious sense, Hagi’s legacy lives on through his son Ianis but the legendary number ten’s influence on modern Romanian football is so much more than that.
Romania have failed to qualify for a World Cup since Hagi retired. Dismayed by the state of their national team and inspired by his old manager, Johan Cruyff, Hagi started his own academy. Now, he has five graduates in the squad at Euro 2024.
Getting there wasn’t easy. Failure to qualify for the last three finals despite a relatively talented squad meant change was needed. Mirel Radoi departed in 2022 and was replaced by current boss, Edward Iordanescu. Romania haven’t looked back since.
International management is harder than people think. Instilling a winning mentality in players the coach spends limited time with is a tricky thing to do. Iordanescu’s first job was to make his team truly believe in themselves.
Romania were handed a challenging qualifying group, but they won their group, ending the campaign undefeated, beating favourites Switzerland, Israel, and Kosovo on their path to the European Championships.
Again, they were handed a tough group. Belgium’s ‘golden generation’ may be a thing of the past, but Kevin de Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku can do some serious damage to the best of them. The same can be said for Ukraine and Slovakia, neither should be underestimated.
Ukraine were up first, it was meant to be an even game, it was anything but. Goals from Nicolae Stanciu, Răzvan Marin, and Denis Drăguș secured their first European Championship win in 24 years.
Looking at the stats, it would appear to be a smash and grab. Ukraine controlled the game, but a misplaced pass from Andriy Lunin after 29 minutes took away all their momentum.
Dennis Man intercepted Lunin’s ball and found Stanciu at the edge of the area. The Romanian captain then delivered a stunning first-time shot into the top-left corner. Stanciu nearly doubled the lead by hitting the crossbar directly from a corner as Romania’s confidence grew.
Their second goal came just seven minutes into the second half when Marin capitalised on a loose ball, firing a low shot from 25 yards. The ball slipped under Real Madrid goalkeeper Lunin’s dive and into the bottom-right corner.
That wasn’t all. Ukraine’s troubles compounded just four minutes later when Drăguș stayed onside to tap Man’s cross into an open net following a short corner routine. The win was secured, and Romania went top of their group after matchday one.
Match day two wasn’t quite so easy. After some VAR induced frustration in their surprise 1-0 defeat to Slovakia in their first game, Belgium were in desperate need of a win against the Romanians. Another defeat would mean Dominico Tedesco’s men would be out of the race for a top two finish.
It couldn’t have started any worse for the Tricolorii. Midfielder Youri Tielemans opened the scoring after just two minutes, firing home from the edge of the area following some good hold-up play from Lukaku to score the Red Devils’ fastest ever goal at a major tournament.
If it wasn’t for VAR, Lukaku would be having the tournament of his life, alas, the footballing gods can’t seem to give the big man a break. The 31-year-old thought he’d doubled Belgium’s lead with a smart finish into the bottom-left corner, only to have it chalked off for offside.
Eventually, Belgium’s other main man, De Bruyne did get their second. With 11 minutes to go, the Manchester City man latched on to Lukaku’s flick before guiding his finish past Florin Niță in the Romanian goal. The game ended 2-0 to Belgium. It was a harsh reality check for Iordanescu and his lads.
Going into the last game of the group stage, each team in Group E had won one and lost one. It was anyone’s for the taking, by far the most interesting of the groups at this iteration of the European Championships.
Romania faced Slovakia with one eye on the Ukraine vs Belgium game, knowing that if they didn’t lose, they had a chance to progress to the next round. The minutes ticked by in historic Frankfurt, fans of both countries holding their breath with each kick of the ball.
Slovakia opened the scoring. Ondrej Duda’s 24th minute header sunk the hearts of Romania fans in the stadium and across the globe. With the other game at 0-0, it looked like Romania were heading out.
Then, 13 minutes later, Hagi was brought down right on the edge of the box. It was tight, and the on field decision was a freekick but after VAR intervened, a penalty was awarded. Up stepped Marin to bury the spot kick, leaving Martin Dúbravka in the Slovakia goal helpless.
Marin nearly doubled his tally just after the hour mark with a curling shot that sailed just over the crossbar. Then, Slovakia’s Lukáš Haraslín came close to securing a winner, but his attempt narrowly missed the target. Despite the efforts of both sides, neither side could find a decisive goal.
The final whistle in the Ukraine vs Belgium game went, it ended 0-0. Romania won the group on goal difference with the Belgians in second and Slovakia qualifying as one of the best third placed sides. Four points is usually enough to qualify, Ukraine are unlucky to go out, but the game is the game.
Now Romania face the Netherlands in the round of 16. The Dutch have failed to impress so far this tournament having only just qualified as one of the better third placed sides in the group stages despite their immensely talented squad.
It’s been a long time since Romania have had a good tournament run, 1994 to be precise. The original Hagi led his ‘golden generation’ to the World Cup quarter finals, eventually losing to Sweden on penalties.
This current Romania side have a long way to go if they’re going to emulate what their predecessors have done. Thanks to Hagi and Iordanescu, they’re certainly on the right track.
Dark horses don’t really exist anymore. In the end, it’s overwhelmingly likely that one of the big boys will once again take the silverware home. It’s been 20 years since Greece won the European Championships, and who knows, maybe on the anniversary another underdog will swipe the trophy from one of the favourites.
Either way, Romania should be immensely proud of what they’ve already accomplished at this European Championship. Progress is being made on and off the pitch, let’s just enjoy the ride and see how far they can go.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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