A dream goal by Nicolae Stanciu (29th minute) put Romania on track for a clear 3-0 win against Ukraine in the Munich Arena on Monday (June 17, 2024). Razvan Marin (53rd) and Denis Dragus (57th) added to the score in the second half and ensured the “Tricolori’s” absolutely deserved victory. Ukrainian goalkeeper Andriy Lunin did not look particularly good in two of the three goals conceded.
The duel between the two Eastern European neighbours began with advantages for Ukraine, which operated in a 4-2-3-1 system and had almost 80 percent possession in the early stages against the deep-lying Romanians (4-1-4-1). Coach Serhiy Rebrov’s team repeatedly tried to attack from the outside, but failed to achieve any results.
In the final third of the attack, the precision needed to get dangerous shots on goal was lacking. Ukraine needed 22 minutes for their first shot, but Artem Dovbyk, Spain’s top scorer with 24 goals last season, missed the target from 18 meters in a central position.
Dream goal by Nicolae Stanciu
A little later, almost out of nowhere, the Romanians took the lead: after a back pass, Ukrainian goalkeeper Andrij Lunin played the ball under pressure into the feet of Dennis Man, who passed the ball to Nicolae Stanciu in the middle. The 31-year-old shot straight away and hit the left corner of the Ukrainian goal (29th minute). The 1-0 for the “Tricolori” with an absolute dream goal.
Romania’s Nicolae Stanciu shoots and scores the 1-0 goal against Ukraine in the corner of the Ukrainian goal.
The goal changed the dynamics of the game, the Romanians were suddenly on the offensive, the goal they had conceded had a clear effect on the Ukrainians. In the 38th minute, Romania almost scored again after a counterattack. The agile man moved in from the right and shot. His shot was slightly deflected and went just wide of the left post. Stanciu almost scored the next corner, but his cross, which was hit with a lot of spin, hit the crossbar of the Ukrainian goal. So the break came with Romania leading 1-0.
Andriy Lunin misses Romania’s second goal
The second half began with a dangerous Romanian finish. Coman moved inside and his shot narrowly missed the Ukrainian goal (46th minute). The “Tricolori” continued to have the upper hand and made it 2-0 after a counterattack through Marin (53rd minute). Ukraine keeper Lunin was in the right corner, but let the long-range shot from over twenty meters slip through under his gloves – a clear goalkeeping error.
Ukraine was now completely out of sorts. Andrei Ratiu could have made it 3-0, but Lunin made a brilliant save from his hard shot from the half-right into the near post (57′). Just a few seconds later, and after Ukraine lost the ball, the third goal followed. After a cross from the strong Man, Dragus only had to put his foot out and push it in from a few meters (57′).
Romania finishes the game confidently
Ukraine had a half-chance through Andrey Yarmolenko (65th), but the former Dortmund player also failed to get the ball on goal and shot well over the bar. On the other side, Stanciu only hit the side netting with a free kick (68th).
The game had lost some of its momentum. Romania slowed down after taking a three-goal lead, while Ukraine continued to try hard but were ineffective. At least Georgiy Sudakov had the first shot on the Romanian goal in the 77th minute, but goalkeeper Florin Nita was there. Nothing much happened in the final phase, apart from a dangerous shot from Mudryk (84th minute). Ultimately, the “Tricolori” won 3-0.
Coach Edward Iordanescu’s tactics are paying off
The Romanian victory was ultimately deserved, even in terms of the margin. Coach Edward Iordanescu’s tactics of staying deep and secure defensively and making pinpricks after winning the ball through counterattacks worked perfectly.
After a bad start to the tournament, Ukraine is already under great pressure on Friday at 3 p.m. in Düsseldorf against Slovakia (in the live ticker and in the audio stream on sportschau.de). Romania will face Belgium in its second match on Saturday at 9 p.m. in Cologne (in the live ticker and in the audio stream on sportschau.de).