From the great Steaua Bucharest teams of the eighties to the Hagi-inspired Romania side that set fie to the World Cup in USA ’94, Romania has a strong football pedigree. The current squad including Roma defender and rumoured Real Madrid transfer target Cristian Chivu and bad-boy striker Adrian Mutu are no exception to the technically sound and tough-to-beat mentality Romanian football is famous for.

Leading the group with Bulgaria and the Netherlands in hot pursuit, Romania look a good bet to make it to Austria and Switzerland next summer. If they beat the Netherlands in October or Bulgaria in November qualification will be virtually guaranteed.