Romania surprisingly defeated Ukraine 3-0.

On June 17th, the Romanian national team caused a surprise by defeating their stronger opponent Ukraine 3-0 in Group C of Euro 2024.

Romania played a very good game against Ukraine in Group C of Euro 2024 - Photo: REUTERS

The match between Romania and Ukraine in Group E of Euro 2024 will take place at 8 PM on June 16th. The two teams qualified through different means. Ukraine was in the same group as two very strong teams, England and Italy, but still secured their place in Euro 2024 through the play-offs. Meanwhile, Romania had a smoother path, topping their group against easier opponents. Ukraine is considered the stronger team due to their experience in recent European Championships. Since 2012, they haven't missed a single tournament. They even reached the quarter-finals at Euro 2020. In contrast, Romania hasn't returned to the European Championship since 2016. They have a dismal record, winning only 6% of their Euro finals appearances – the worst record for a team that has participated at least twice. This experience and past tournament record are the reasons why Ukraine is considered the stronger team compared to Romania.

Starting lineup for the Romania vs. Ukraine match - Graphic: AN BINH

Match statistics between Romania and Ukraine - Graphic: AN BINH

However, recently, Romania has shown more progress than before. Under coach Iordanescu, the team is becoming more effective. In the qualifiers, although they didn't face too many strong teams, Romania's unbeaten record is commendable. Bookmakers are offering odds of Ukraine giving Romania a 1/2 (0.5) goal handicap in this match. Meanwhile, the over/under odds are 2 1/4 (2.25) goals. This ratio shows that bookmakers still rate Ukraine's chances of winning higher, but are not overly confident that they will score many goals. According to Opta, a website specializing in football analysis, Ukraine's chances of winning are 42.6%, while Romania's are 31.5%. Sportmole predicts Ukraine's chances of winning at 48.91%, compared to 23.99% for their opponent. The most likely score is 1-0 in favor of Ukraine (13.96%). While a 2-1 scoreline has only an 8.98% chance of occurring, the expert's choice is: Ukraine to win with a 1/2 goal handicap, and the match to have 2 goals or less. Prediction: Ukraine wins 1-0.

• 1'
• Start the match
  Swedish referee Glenn Nyberg, along with players from both teams, entered the field to begin the match.
  • 
  • 

• 5'
• Comment
  In the opening minutes, the pace of the game was quite fast, but neither team had created any situations that threatened the other's goal.
  • 

• 8'
• Opportunity
  Romania just had a dangerous opportunity when Răzvan Marin unleashed a shot from outside the penalty area, but the ball was too weak and went straight to goalkeeper Andriy Lunin (Ukraine), who easily caught it.
  • 

• 20'
• Comment
  The match was quite tight, with Romania playing a defensive game with a large number of players in their own half. This made it very difficult for Ukraine to get close to goalkeeper Andriy Lunin's goal.
  • 

• 28'
• Goal
  Goalkeeper Andriy Lunin's mistake created an opportunity for Nicolae Stanciu to unleash a beautiful shot from outside the penalty area, scoring the winning goal and giving Romania a 1-0 lead.
  • 

• 35'
• Expert commentator
  After scoring the opening goal, the Romanian players' morale soared, and they continuously put pressure on Ukraine, but they still couldn't score another goal.

• 37'
• Opportunity
  Romania had another dangerous attack; Dennis Man unleashed a great shot, but the ball deflected off a Ukrainian defender's leg and went out.

• 38'
• Opportunity
  Shortly afterwards, Nicolae Stanciu took a corner kick, the ball hitting the underside of the crossbar before going out.
  • 

• 45+2'
• Comment
  The first half ended with a 1-0 lead for Romania.

• 46'
• Comment
  The players from both teams returned to the field to play the remaining 45 minutes of the second half.
  • 

• 54'
• Goal
  Razvan Marin scored the goal that put Romania 2-0 ahead.
  • 

• 57'
• Goal
  From a corner kick, Romania executed a beautiful combination play, and Denis Drăguş tapped the ball into the net from close range after a perfect assist from Dennis Man... 3-0 for Romania.
  • 

• 75'
• Expert commentator
  Ukraine is trying to find an equalizer, but their attacks are too monotonous and uncreative to penetrate Romania's well-organized defense.

• 77'
• Opportunity
  Heorhiy Sudakov unleashed a powerful long-range shot, but goalkeeper Florin Niță (Romania) made an excellent save.

• 85'
• Comment
  As time ticked down to the final minutes of the match, Ukraine remained ineffective in their search for a consolation goal.

• 90+4'
• The match has ended.
  The referee blew the final whistle.
• Tuoitre.vn
• Source: https://tuoitre.vn/romania-bat-ngo-da-bai-ukraine-3-0-20240617131403443.htm