Key facts
• Romania confirmed their progress to their first finals tournament since UEFA EURO 2000 with two games to go, with a 2-0 win in Luxembourg completing a run of ten unbeaten games in Group G.
• It was vindication for coach Victor Piţurcă, who had also led Romania through qualifying for UEFA EURO 2000™ but was no longer in the post when the finals came round.
• Romania got their campaign off to a shaky start when they conceded two late goals in a 2-2 home draw with Bulgaria but that was to be their biggest setback.
• A 0-0 draw in the Netherlands in their fourth game sparked a run of six straight wins, with Dorin Goian scoring the only goal in the return against the Dutch in Constanta to leave Romania on the threshold of the finals.
• They took the final step by winning 2-0 in Luxembourg through goals from Florentin Petre and Ciprian Marica.
• Although Piţurcă’s side let their unbeaten record slip in their next game, losing 1-0 in Bulgaria, they finished the campaign with a 6-1 victory over nine-man Albania to confirm their place as group winners.
• Although Romania qualified for the 1984 and 1996 UEFA European Championship finals, they failed to win a match. Their first victory in the finals actually took place in their ninth match, defeating England 3-2 in the UEFA EURO 2000 finals, a result that provided them with a place in the knockout stages of the competition.
• Up until the end of qualifying for UEFA EURO 2008, Romania had appeared in all 13 UEFA European Championship qualifying competitions, and had played 105 matches. In that time, they had won 52, drawn 27 and lost 26 with 191 goals scored and 104 conceded.
from: http://en.euro2008.uefa.com
Tags: Euro 2008, info, Romania
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