Romania boss Edward Iordanescu has said the current generation of players has “limitless” potential.
The Tricolorii ended 24 years of hurt by beating Ukraine in their Euro 2024 opener, sending them to the top of Group E ahead of Belgium’s match against Slovakia.
Nicolae Stanciu gave the Romanians the lead in the first half, beating Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin with a brilliant curling effort that went in off the bar.
Ukraine tried to rally but found themselves 2-0 down within 10 minutes of the second half, Razvan Marin burying a low effort from distance.
And Romania finished the game off a few minutes later, Denis Dragus tapped home from close range to secure the three points.
Iordanescu was emotional after the match and had nothing but praise for not just the players and fans who have been following their nation on the pitch, but for every Romanian in the world.
He said: “I’d like to thank every Romanian everywhere in the world. I know that they were with us today.
📰 REPORT: Tricolorii cruise to victory in Group E opener 🥵#EURO2024 | #ROUUKR
— UEFA EURO 2024 (@EURO2024) June 17, 2024
“It was a fantastic effort by my team. If you had any doubts, I think you can believe me now that this is a great team. Congratulations to the lads. It’s just incredible.
“Since I joined the national team, I’ve had difficult moments. It’s not always been easy.
“We’ve had other big performances. We’ve had golden generations with big performances, but this generation represents the soul.
“This team has put the biggest effort into everything. As big a heart as this team, nobody has ever had. This generation is limitless.”
Player of the Match Stanciu was also delighted with how he and his team-mates performed on the big stage.
He added: “I know myself and I know my team-mates, so I know we’re not going to celebrate after this win. We’re only going to concentrate on Belgium now.
“This shirt means everything to me. To score at a EURO finals and to win in the manner that we did, it’s just incredible.”
