By Theo Van Zyl
Romania won their first match at a European Championship (Euros) since 2000, beating a talented Ukrainian squad 3-0 on Monday afternoon.
The victory is only Romania’s second-ever at a Euros tournament.
Ukraine made a strong start to the game, dominating possession in the first fifteen minutes. Despite having much of the ball, they had little to show for it, with just two shots, both of which failed to test the Romanian goalkeeper Florin Nita.
Romania survived the early dominance and grew into the game. At the half-hour mark, Ukraine goalkeeper Andriy Lunin’s clearance landed straight at the feet of Dennis Man who set the ball to his captain Nicolae Stanciu who fired the ball into the top corner, leaving the Real Madrid star with no chance.
A goal that is already an early contender for the goal of the tournament.
Romania came close to doubling their lead when Stanciu’s corner kick spun goalwards, hitting the crossbar, which left Lunin scrambling.
Eduard Iordanescu’s Romanian side started the second half as they ended the first. After defending for much of the first half, they went on the offensive in the second.
Rasvan Marin’s low-driven effort from the edge of the box slipped under the hands of Lunin making it 2-0.
Lunin was given no time to recover, having to make a sharp save at his near post to stop a third goal. From the resulting corner, Romania played it short to Man who sidestepped Mykola Shaparenko before crossing to striker Denis Dragus, who tapped it into an empty net.
The result means it’s Romania’s biggest-ever win at a European Championship, putting them at the top of Group E.
Ukraine will look to bounce back from the loss on Friday when they play Slovakia. Romania will hope to build on this big win when they come up against a favoured Belgian side on Saturday night.
Pictured above: Romanian players celebrate.
Source: Euros 2024/X
