Romania lost on Saturday the most important match of the qualifications for the 2026 World Cup, with Austria, not so much score (1-2) being annoying, as the way he evolved in Vienna. With the chances of going to the final tournament in the US, Canada and Mexico Diminated, the tricolors play today (21.45, Prima TV) against Cyprus, a match in which the three points are vital for the national course.
Mircea Lucescu promises that he will stay until the end of the qualifications. PHOTO SportPictures
In the last days there have been a lot of rumors that Mircea Lucescu will give up the first representative, favorite to take the place being Ioan Ovidiu Sabău. It was spoken about a resignation coming immediately after the tonight match, as well as one to be put into practice at the end of the matches in the qualification group at CM 2026.
Hopes to form a strong group
The coach shed light yesterday, at the official match conference, giving assurances that he continued on the national technical bench, which he will not leave hard, trusting the Romanian players. “No, in no case (no – he is not thinking about resigning). Here, in the national team, you have to have the courage. Of course I will continue. I still have a chance won by this team.said Mircea Lucescu, referring to the fact that several players are injured.
Then, the national coach explained the problems faced by the first representative, which has generated the lack of results lately. First, the coach was related to injuries. In fact, three players left the canton because they became unavailable. “Bîrligea and Bancu were injured, it is the third that does not play, Stanciu (suspended no). Mihăilă was injured on the other leg. He came from Parma with a 3 km running program, cannot be for a performance athlete. Bancu has an acute tendonitis for a long time, he has a more problem.”revealed Mircea Lucescu, at the conference.
Romanians no longer know how to pass
Then, the legendary coach went to the problems related to the preparation of the Romanian players. “Austrian football has made great progress. Now they have no player from the internal championship. I think this is the direction we must follow, then we will have a strong national. Our championship, as it is presented, will be difficult to give the national team a first 11. This happened in the 80s-90s. Our.
We still do not rise to the need. I put this in the foreground, the talent of the players. There is no quality, there is only the ambition in the preparation of the players. I'm hit by that! Who gets injured? Players who are least injured. I stay 2-3 months, I come back to play, I get to injuries again. We were missing 7 players since the last match. I don't lose my confidence in players. We hope to return all the injured players, Drăgușin, Ianis, Olaru, Mihăilă … There is the big problem that we have five players without contracts. There are mental problems ”said Lucescu.
The referees, the eternal story
The coach was completed by Florin Tanase, the scorer in the Vienna match: “It is a moral debt to supporters, towards this shirt of the national team. Really speaking, it is difficult to take the first place in this group, but we have a big chance at the dam. We made mistakes in this match, it is hard against such an opponent.said the striker's striker, at which point he was interrupted by Mircea Lucescu: “A little is stupid, it was a clear penalty in the 2nd minute. And in the match with Bosnia, and now, the same thing. Penalty!”, It was the intervention of the coach, who confessed that the defeat with Austria was tormented and still torments it.
“What was in my mind From that match it belongs to me only! A match that we normally didn't have to lose. Sure, I'm a very strong team, I watched their matches. I realized that not by chance these players play at the highest level. We showed at the beginning of the match that we can cope. Then that extraordinary desire has lost us since the beginning of the match, and then we tried to prevent them from playing, instead of playing. I hope the team will pass over this moment. “
What will be with Cyprus
The match with Cyprus will be very difficult, the coach believes: “If someone imagines that he is the same Cyprus from the 3-1 match, he is wrong. From the match with us a few players have disappeared, but from the match with Bosnia it is the same. I am surprised that our coaches do not look at the Cypriot players, they have a few formidable players.”
Group H from the World Cup preliminaries 2026
March 21:
Cyprus – San Marino 2-0, Romania – Bosnia and Herzegovina 0-1
March 24:
Bosnia and Herzegovina – Cyprus 2-1, San Marino – Romania 1-5
June 7:
Bosnia and Herzegovina – San Marino 1-0, Austria – Romania 2-1
Today:
Romania – Cyprus (21.45), San Marino – Austria (21.45)
September 6:
Austria – Cyprus (21.45), San Marino – Bosnia and Herzegovina (21.45)
September 9:
Bosnia and Herzegovina – Austria (21.45), Cyprus – Romania (21.45)
October 9:
Austria – San Marino (21.45), Cyprus – Bosnia and Herzegovina (21.45)
October 12:
San Marino – Cyprus (16.00), Romania – Austria (21.45)
November 15:
Cyprus – Austria (19.00), Bosnia and Herzegovina – Romania (21.45)
November 18:
Austria – Bosnia and Herzegovina (21.45), Romania – San Marino (21.45)
At the final tournament hosted next year by the US, Canada and Mexico directly qualify the winning bands of the qualification groups. The teams ranked 2nd and the 4 coming from the League of Nations play dam matches.
Ranking group H.
1. Bosnia and Herzegovina 3 3 0 0 4-1 9p
2. Romania 3 1 0 2 6-4 3p
3. Cyprus 2 1 0 1 3-2 3p
4. Austria 1 1 0 0 2-1 3p
5. San Marino 3 0 0 3 1-8 0p
