Ukraine’s Euro 2024 campaign got off to a disasterous start as they fell to an emphatic 3-0 defeat to Romania.
With Premier League stars like Mykhailo Mudryk, Oleksandr Zinchenko and Ilya Zabarnyi in the squad, Ukraine went into the game heavy favourites and that was reflected with their 71% possession across the 90 minutes.
However, that control of the ball did not translate to success in front of goal, with Ukraine managing just two shots on target and falling apart at the back to hand Romania a significant victory.
Real Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin endured a game to forget as his poor clearance was intercepted by the creative Dennis Man, who squared for Nicolae Stanciu’s stunning strike from outside the area on the half-hour mark.
Stanciu nearly beat Lunin directly from a corner soon after but watched the ball strike the top of the crossbar and away from danger.
Romania were clearly satisfied to hand Ukraine plenty of possession but an alarming lack of edge in the final third ensured there were never any suggestions of a comeback.
Source – Mykhailo Mudryk and Oleksandr Zinchenko powerless as Ukraine trounced at Euro 2024 (90min.com)
