The Răzvan Lucescu-era began in style as the young manager lead Romania to a 1-0 victory over Lithuania. The result pulls the "tricolori" level with Austria, two points behind the Lithuanians in third.
From the start Romania went on the attack as Tiberiu Ghioane of Ukraine champions Dynamo Kyiv narrowly missed connecting with Ciprian Marica only three minutes in. The VfB Stuttgart striker, Marica, was a whirlwind of activity and after a number of failed efforts he found the mark with six minutes remaining as he sent the ball in from twenty metres. The Lithuanian side continued to have difficulty marking Ciprian Marica but with Romania displaying textbook defending, their was no breaking through and the match concluded without further mark.
Along with "tricolori" debuts for Iulian Apostol (Unirea Urziceni) and Mihai Roman (FC Braşov), the match will be remembered as a exciting first step to recovery with Răzvan Lucescu in charge.