Then, on June 22, 1994, in Pontiac, Michigan, Switzerland and Romania played the second group game of the World Championship. Goals by Alain Sutter, Stephane Chapuise and twice by Adrian Knup ensured a historic 4-1 win. This was Switzerland’s first World Cup victory since the 1954 home tournament. Meanwhile, the national team lost all six games in Chile (1962) and England (1966).

Switzerland have only faced the Romanians twice since the legendary victory: in 2012, the team led by Ottmar Hitzfeld lost 1-0 in a friendly match in Lucerne, where the game will be played again on Monday. Four years later, the two teams drew 1-1 in their second group match at the European Championships in France.

Overall, from the Swiss point of view, the balance is slightly negative. In 13 games, Romania has one more win than Switzerland with four draws. Now these statistics should even out, because the team of the national team coach Murat Yakin is the favorite in the top match of group I.

Missed dress rehearsal in Kosovo

Although Switzerland has only missed a major tournament since 2004, the glory days of the Romanian national team are long gone. Between 1990 and 2000, he qualified for five of the six World and European Championships. Since then, only two participations have been added: at the European Championships 2008 (Switzerland and Austria) and 2016 (France), they failed in the group stage. The results are also reflected in the world rankings, where Switzerland (12th) is 34 positions ahead of Romania (46th).

In qualifying for the 2024 European Championship in Germany, the Romanians, who have been coached by Eduard Jordanescu since 2022, started with two wins, as did Switzerland. However, in Friday’s third round they drew in Kosovo and were closer to defeat than victory.

The Swiss also struggled in Andorra, but secured the three points they were aiming for with a 2-1 win. The fact that the players looked tired and dispersed, especially in the second half, did not cause concern for Yaquin: against an opponent who defended almost 90 minutes, at some point errors could creep in, he said after the game.

Create a good starting point for fall

Romania needs to do a little more for the game in Lucerne. However, from the Swiss point of view, the goal remains the same: with a dominant game, the national team wants to be there without dropping points even after four rounds.

With four wins in a row, Switzerland have qualified for the European Championship only once: in a group of four, they won home and away matches against Greece and Malta in 1970 and 1971. Due to a draw and defeat against England, the Swiss still missed participation in the 1972 final in Belgium.

This would be unlikely in the current qualifier, in which the first two places qualify for the tournament. With another win at a sold-out stadium in Lucerne, Switzerland will be five points ahead of the second-placed team (Romania or Israel) at the top of the table and can look forward to the rest of the program with two games each. September, October and November with relative ease.

(surrender)