P W D L F A Pts
SPAIN 6 6 0 0 17 3 18
SWEDEN 6 3 2 1 13 8 11
ROMANIA 6 3 1 2 13 7 10
NORWAY 6 2 3 1 11 8 9
MALTA 6 1 0 5 2 13 3
FAROE IS 6 0 0 6 3 20 0
Revelation
GEORGE PUSCAS
Romania
An ever-present as the Tricolorii
strive to book their place in the
Euro 2020 finals stage, the 23-
year-old striker is the poster boy
for a rejuvenated Romania.
No fewer than six players from
the under-21 squad that reached
the last four of this summer’s
European Championship are now
in the senior group. And, thus far,
Puscas has been the pick of the
group, leading the line well and
scoring four times in Group F.
In many ways he is thearchetypal old-school centre-
forward: tall, strong, excellent in
the air and effective in his hold-
up play. However, he does have
other strings to his bow, not least
his mobility, clever movement
and incisive runs with the ball
at his feet.
His four goals at the Euro
Under-21s earned him the Silver
Boot as second-top marksman
at the tournament and he is
Romania’s best-ever finisher at
that level with 16 goals in all.
Once with Internazionale, who
subsequently sent him on loan to
four other Italian sides, he now
plays in the English second tier
after securing a permanent
move to Reading.start of last season – has looked far more
secure, settling in well in the Premier
League and playing an instrumental role
in Chelsea’s achievements of finishing
third in the English top flight and winning
the Europa League.
A winner in each of his seven starts for
La Roja, Arrizabalaga was the man of the
match in Spain’s 2-1 victory in Romania,
pulling off a remarkable late save to keep
out a point-blank George Puscas header.
Reduced to 10 men after Diego Llorente
was sent off with 10 minutes left, Spain
would have cracked without the keeper’samazing block with his legs.
Especially renowned for his sharp
reactions, dominating presence, comfort
on the ball and indulging in an obsessive
training regime, Arrizabalaga is just
the latest in a long line of Basque
goalkeepers who have featured for
the national side, including Jose Angel
Iribar (1964-76), Luis Miguel Arconada
(1978-85) and Andoni Zubizarreta
(1985-98).
The big question now is will he, like his
predecessors, enjoy a decade or more
with the national team?23.03.19 Sweden-Romania 2-1
23.03.19 Malta-Faroe Is 2-1
23.03.19 Spain-Norway 2-1
26.03.19 Romania-Faroe Is 4-1
26.03.19 Norway-Sweden 3-3
26.03.19 Malta-Spain 0-2
07.06.19 Sweden-Malta 3-0
07.06.19 Norway-Romania 2-2
07.06.19 Faroe Is-Spain 1- 4
10.06.19 Spain-Sweden 3-0
10.06.19 Malta-Romania 0-4
10.06.19 Faroe Is-Norway 0-2
05.09.19 Romania-Spain 1- 2
05.09.19 Norway-Malta 2-0
05.09.19 Faroe Is-Sweden 0-408.09.19 Romania-Malta 1- 0
08.09.19 Sweden-Norway 1-1
08.09.19 Spain-Faroe Is 4-0
12 .10 .19 Faroe Is-Romania
12 .10 .19 Norway-Spain
12 .10 .19 Malta-Sweden
15 .10 .19 Sweden-Spain
15 .10 .19 Romania-Norway
15 .10 .19 Faroe Is-Malta
15 .11.19 Norway-Faroe Is
15 .11.19 Spain-Malta
15 .11.19 Romania-Sweden
18 .11.19 Sweden-Faroe Is
18 .11.19 Spain-Romania
18 .11.19 Malta-NorwayGROUP F
Mobile...PuscasSecure...Arrizabalaga