Our prediction for this World Cup 2026 match:
Romania will be aiming to overtake North Macedonia in second place in Group J when they take on Liechtenstein on Rheinpark Stadion. The Tricolori failed to turn their dominance into victory in a goalless draw with Iceland, and, as a result, they face a must-win situation against Liechtenstein. Huesca defender Andrei Ratiu is banned for the match due to the accumulation of yellow cards.
Liechtenstein, on the other hand, experienced all sorts of problems at the back in a 9-0 loss to Germany. Since the minnows have nothing to play for in Sunday’s clash, we believe that punters from all four corners of the world can find value in betting on the visiting team. To make things even worse for the home side Jens Hofer is suspended following his sending off in the Volkswagen Arena defeat.
Highlighted Player (Ciprian Tatarusanu):
Anton Ciprian Tatarusanu is one of Romania’s most famous goalkeeper at the moment, and he has surprisingly spent the majority of his career up to date in his native country. The highly rated shot-stopper joined the most famous club on domestic stage Steaua via Juventus Bucuresti and Gloria Bistrita and he would go on to spend next seven years in the capital, making over 130 league appearances and featuring in over 40 matches in European competitions.
The big club move finally materialised in the summer of 2014 as he waited his contract to expire before signing for Fiorentina, and he quickly established himself as the number one goalkeeper at Artemio Franchi.
When it comes to international stage, Tatarusanu has spent much of his career competing with Costel Pantilimon for the starting berth in the national team, and he has emerged a winner, making 30 odd appearances for the Tricolorii since 2010. Bar any surprises, Tatarusanu will make his debut appearance at major tournaments at the Euro 2016 finals.
Highlighted Team (Romania):
Romania were one of just four European sides to take part at the first ever World Cup in 1930, and the team have since achieved respectable results on the international stage, albeit failing to challenge for major trophies.
Led by arguably their best ever footballer Gheorghe Hagi, the Tricolorii narrowly missed out on the semi-finals at the 1994 World Cup in the United States, losing to Sweden on penalties. Romania made a total of seven appearances at the World Cup finals, while qualifying for five European Championship tournaments. The Tricolorii went the farthest in 2000, when they were eliminated by Italy in the quarter-finals.
Tied at the top of the goalscoring charts, Gheorghe Hagi and Adrian Mutu are the only two Romanian footballers to have gained worldwide recognition, but Dorinel Munteanu, Dan Petrescu, Gheorghe Popescu and Viorel Moldovan are also worth mention. Romania play their home games at the Arena National in Bucarest.