Romania will look to kick-start their UEFA Euro 2024 campaign with a win when they square up against Ukraine in a Group E fixture on Monday.
Romania and Ukraine are all set to square up against each other in a competitive game for the first time at the Euros. Edward Iordănescu’s team were a dominant force in qualifying and will look to build on it when they square up against a team that had to go through the playoffs to reach this far.
The Tricolorii were a dominant force in the qualifying stage as they remained unbeaten and finished on top of Group I. The win over Switzerland in the final qualifier game ensured they finished on top with six wins and four draws.
While they were quite a force during the qualifiers, the recent friendlies did not really go according to plan. They are heading into UEFA Euro 2024 on the back of consecutive draws against Bulgaria and Liechtenstein and will have to do much better if they want to register their second win at the major European tournament.
Ukraine failed to secure direct qualification for Euro 2024 as they finished third in Group C behind England and Italy. They finished the qualifying campaign with four wins, two draws, and two defeats then headed into the play-offs because of their previous UEFA Nations League performance.
Serhiy Rebrov’s team went past Bosnia and Herzegovina and Iceland to book a spot in the European Championship. While they did lose 3-1 to Poland, Ukraine managed to bounce back with a 4-0 win over Moldova heading into the tournament and will look to make it to the knockout stage. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at both teams and tries to predict the tactics they could put to use.
Team News & Tactics
Romania
Romania will be without Olimpiu Morutan at the Euro as he has been ruled out because of an ACL injury. They do not really have any fresh injury concerns and will look to field their best XI.
Edward Iordănescu will go ahead with the 4-2-3-1 formation, where Florin Nita will be in goal. Andrei Rațiu and Nicușor Bancu will be the full-backs. Meanwhile, in the heart of the defence, Radu Drăgușin will pair up with Andrei Burcă.
The back four will aim for a clean sheet, and they will have support from Marius Marin and Răzvan Marin, who will feature as the double pivot in front of the backline. Valentin Mihaila and Dennis Man will provide width to their attacks, while Nicolae Stanciu will be the attacking midfielder behind their striker Denis Dragus.
Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Nita; Ratiu, Dragusin, Burca, Bancu; M. Marin, R. Marin; Man, Stanciu, Mihaila; Dragus
Ukraine
Serhiy Rebrov will be without the services of Vitaliy Mykolenko for their opening fixture of the Euro. With the left-back out injured, Oleksandr Zinchenko is expected to drop back into the defence from midfield.
Everyone else is expected to be 100% for this fixture. The away team are expected to line up in a 4-3-3 formation, where Andriy Lunin will be in goal. The shot-stopper is heading into the tournament on the back of some exceptional performances for Real Madrid, and he will have a big say on how far they go.
Yukhym Konoplya and Oleksandr Zinchenko will feature as the full-backs, while Illia Zabarnyi and Mykola Matviyenko will take charge in the heart of the defence. The midfield trifecta will be made up of Taras Stepanenko, Mykola Shaparenko, and Heorhiy Sudakov.
The trio will look to control the tempo of the game and ensure they have the majority of the ball. Mykhailo Mudryk and Viktor Tsygankov will feature on the flanks for Ukraine, while La Liga top scorer Artem Dovbyk will be leading the line for them.
Probable Lineup (4-3-3): Lunin; Konoplya, Zabarnyi, Matviyenko, Zinchenko; Shaparenko, Stepanenko, Sudakov; Tsygankov, Dovbyk, Mudryk
Key Stats
- This will be the first-ever competitive meeting between the two teams at the Euro.
- Romania are all set to feature in their sixth European Championship, their first since 2016.
- The Tricolorii have only won one game at the European Championship which came against England back in 2000.
- While they did miss out on a place in the 2022 World Cup, Ukraine are all set to feature in their fourth consecutive Euro.
- Ukraine did make it to the quarter-finals three years back and will be eager to repeat their heroics.
Player to Watch
Artem Dovbyk
In his debut season in the Spanish top flight, the Ukrainian international managed to win the top scorers award. He was involved in 36 league games and ended up scoring 24 goals, the 26-year-old striker even had eight assists to his name. Given the kind of form he was in throughout the season, it won’t be a surprise to see him find the back of the net.
Prediction
Romania 1-2 Ukraine
Romania had a better qualifying campaign as they finished first in their group and got the ticket to the finals but Ukraine have come this far via the playoffs. They might not have been at their best so far but they do have a lot of quality in their ranks and if they do fire, stopping them will be a big problem for Edward Iordănescu’s team. The Hard Tackle predicts a hard-fought 2-1 win for the away team.
