Moreno's tough Bucharest debut
The Spanish national team demands our attention from to time, and today is one of those days. For some years we have looked upon these phases of qualification as being too easy, but we must not lose perspective. In our group are Sweden and Romania, as well as Norway (albeit one on the decline) plus the weaker sides of Malta and the Faroe Islands. The trip to Romania is one of the group's trickier ties, because they are a team with a past and a present. They lost in Sweden by just a single goal, drew in Norway and sit in second place. They await us in Bucharest where, take note, Spain has never won. There have been three losses and one draw.
U21s step up for Romania
Romania is managed by the well known Contra, who was a tremendously successful full-back with that Alavés team that reached a European final. His inspiration as a coach comes from Simeone, which suggests we'll have a tough nut to crack, one that fights for every metre of space. Romania recently reached the semi-finals of the U21 European Cup and Contra has called up seven of those boys, including the man for goals, Puscas, who will be fed from behind by Stanciu, the player Robert Moreno highlighted yesterday at the press conference. Also available is the talented Ianis Hagi, son of the legend.
An interesting match
For Robert Moreno it is his first official match as manager. For the Sweden game he was already in charge of the team, and did so with success, but we can say that he was a back-up. He is now the successor, although we don't know for how long. He himself has offered to step down if Luis Enrique chooses to return. His huge tragedy has shaken the atmosphere around the group and all of Spanish football, which continues to send messages of affection and solidarity to a man whose life has been dealt the worst blow. Regarding the team, not much is known. That game against Sweden gave us clues, with the decisions then already being made by Moreno, so based on that we can make some assumptions. In any case, it is a game worth of our interest.