Romania to take on Germany in its first-ever semifinal at the European Under-21 Championship

Paul Barbu 27/06/2019 | 14:19

Romania’s Under-21 football team will play its first ever semifinal at the European U21 Championship against Germany, the holder of last year’s trophy. The match is set for 7 pm (Romania time) and will be played in Bologna, Italy, where temperatures are expected to exceed 40 degrees Celsius on Thursday.

The Romanian national team has qualified to the semifinal after they beat Croatia (4-1), England (4-2) and tied with France (0-0) in the group stage. Germany defeated Denmark and Serbia and tied with Austria.

Scheduling scandal

After the semifinals were set, UEFA decided to change the schedule and reverse the order of Thursday’s two matches. As a result, Romania-Germany, which was initially set for 10 pm Romania time, will be played at 7 pm, in extreme heat conditions.

The other semifinal will the youth teams of France and Spain.

German coach’s message for Romania

“I congratulate Romania for its presence in these semifinals, it is the result of talent, combined with the work and experience of the players working in Italy, Denmark or Austria. Ianis is a very good player, but we do not have a special plan just for him, but for the whole team. My players have a special discipline that I enjoy very much,” said Stefan Kuntz, quoted by the official FRF website.