Euro 2016 Team Guide: Group A – Romania

Don’t expect any fireworks from Anghel Iordanescu’s side.

They have have qualified as unbeaten runners-up to Northern Ireland in qualifying, but they scored just 11 goals in their entire campaign.

Romania also have a terrible record when they get to the finals. The nation has qualified just four times in the event’s history (1984, 1996, 2000 and 2008) and on three of those occasions have been dumped out in the group stages.

The only time they did progress was in Belgium and Holland in 2000, when England’s Phil Neville gifted them a last-minute penalty and they scraped through as group runners-up at the expense of Kevin Keegan’s side.

Star Man – Vlad Chiriches

Yes, that Vlad Chiriches.

He may have failed to win a regular place in the Spurs starting line-up before his move to Napoli but the centre-half is a key part of a Romanian defensive unit that conceded just two goals over the course of their qualifying campaign.

It's just a shame he never quite managed to mirror that kind of impact during his Spurs career.

One to Watch –  Alexandru Maxim

Every team needs a decent number ten and in Maxim, Romania have one of the best.

This attacking midfielder plies his trade with VfB Stuttgart in the Bundesliga and while they’ve had a bit of a stinker this season, Maxim remains one of the stand-out talents.

There have been a few Premier League clubs sniffing around this dead-ball specialist, most notably Swansea who had a £5million bid for him turned down last year.

A solid showing at the Euros and the interest – and that price tag – will inevitably rise.

Coach – Anghel Iordanescu

The most successful manager in Romania’s history, Anghel Iordanescu steered his national side to three successive major tournaments in the 1990s - most notably at the 1994 World Cup where they reached the quarter-finals for the first time in their history.

The difference today is that there is no Hagi, Dumitrescu, Popescu or Petrescu at his disposal.

Nicknamed ‘The General,’ this is Iordanescu’s third stint at national team manager, after a less successful second spell from 2002-2004 that saw him quit football and take up politics instead, later serving as a senator in the Romanian senate.

Factfile

Most capped player: Dorinel Munteanu (134)

Highest goalscorer: Gheorge Hagi and Adrian Mutu (35)

Best performance in Euros: Quarter-finals in 2000

FIFA world ranking: TBC

Odds: 100/1

Group A Fixtures

Friday, June 10: France v Romania (20:00, Stade de France, Paris)

Saturday, June 11: Albania v Switzerland (14:00, Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Lens)

Wednesday, June 15: Romania v Switzerland (17:00, Parc des Princes, Paris)

Wednesday, June 15: France v Albania (20:00, Stade Velodrome, Marseille)

Sunday, June 19: Romania v Albania (20:00, Stade de Lyon)

Sunday, June 19: Switzerland v France (20:00, Stade Pierre Mauroy, Lille)