Romania managed to resist on 0-0 in its match against Netherlands on rival turf on Saturday, accounting for the qualifying rounds of the European Championship. Coach Victor Piturca, football players and officials hailed the result and said they were sure of Romania’s chances from now on.
The Romanian team looked superior in the first half with two shots on target by Marica and one by Mutu. And pressure continued in the second half with Mutu and substitute Daniel Nicolae, but to no avail. Romanian goalkeeper Lobont also rejected several of Dutch counter-offensives, including two attempts by Sneijder.
Netherlands leads the Group G with 11 points from five matches, followed by Romania and Bulgaria with eight points from four matches each.
“It’s a great result that makes us regain the two points lost against Bulgaria. The boys played excellent tactics, we had opportunities in the first round. The one point is fantastic for us.
I wanted a win, but let’s be real, this point is important and we got it from a formidable team that did not have chances to score - that says a lot”, Piturca said confidently after the match.
Players Mutu, Chivu and Tamas said they were pleased with the result and despite their expectations of a hard match a victory would not have been impossible with more concentration and boldness.
But Mircea Sandu, head of the Romanian Football Federation, said that while the team played well despite some errors harder times are to come with the next matches, including Slovenia.
HotNews.ro, Mar 26, 2007
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