The Romania national football team suffered a heavy defeat in Poland, losing 6:0 in a Nations League match. After two defeats in the first two rounds, Romania arrived in Poland seeking their first point, but instead endured a real catastrophe.
Romania’s new manager Gheorghe Hagi, the legendary former international and ex-Real Madrid and Barcelona player, continued his run of defeats in official matches. With this third consecutive loss in his third official game in charge, Hagi became the first Romanian manager in history to start his tenure so poorly.
The key moment came in the 22nd minute when Radu Drăgușin received a straight red card. Two minutes later, Robert Lewandowski converted a penalty to give Poland the lead. Lewandowski then increased the score to 2:0 in the 47th minute, and just two minutes later Virgil Ghiță scored an own goal. Piotr Zieliński scored the fourth goal in the 62nd minute, and the ‘fireworks’ continued with a goal from Jan Bednarek in the 66th minute. Lewandowski completed his hat-trick in the 86th minute to set the final score at 6:0.
Romanian players left the pitch with their heads down to applaud the away fans after the final whistle. Manager Hagi went straight to the dressing room after sitting motionless on the bench in the final minutes, shocked by what was happening. The Romanians did not hesitate to boo their players, followed by insults directed at the Romanian Football Federation, and the team did not linger long in front of their supporters.
Romania had not conceded six goals in a single match since 13 November 1977, when they lost to Yugoslavia 4:6. The team had also not lost by a margin of six goals since 24 May 1967, when Switzerland beat Romania 7:1.
Adrian Mutu analysed Romania’s performance on domestic television. 'I believe the penalty was awarded too easily. If this were a team with a greater reputation, I think it would not have been given,' Mutu stated. 'As for the match itself, it is difficult to analyse. This is a very important moment for the team. We must stand by them and pass the right judgment. But while we stand by them, I can only imagine what is on their minds, what Hagi is going through. Unfortunately, we are left with an evening in which we suffered humiliation.'
Mutu added: 'I saw an apathetic and disorientated team, players who were just walking around the pitch. I did not see fear of defeat. The situation is serious, Romania’s reputation is at stake. When you wear the national team shirt, you must play at the highest level, not like this. These results do not help us at all, and the atmosphere is not in Hagi’s favour. What could I blame him for? After the red card, he switched to a 4-3-2 formation in an attempt to secure at least a point. Andrei Rațiu lacked inspiration; perhaps this was his weakest match in a national team shirt. At 6:0, there was little to say.'
