This match had been billed as one of the most boring of the group stage but, by the end, it produced a strong goal of the tournament contender and a thread of heartwarming storylines on and off the pitch that will live long in the memory.
Nicolae Stanciu, the captain who scored a rasping piledriver from distance to set Romania on their way to their best-ever major tournament win, led the unified celebrations with a megaphone as thousands of fans toasted to the biggest shock of the tournament so far.
He marched over to the sea of yellow shirts with a beaming euphoric joy but then was overwhelmed by emotion as he embraced his family, including young children with tears flooding from all corners of the Stanciu travelling party’s faces.
In scenes reminiscent of Iceland at Euro 2016, the Romanians will have captured the hearts of many around the continent who managed to convince their boss to work from home or get the game on in the workplace for a Monday lunchtime fixture that was hardly inspiring on paper.
Many in those offices and building sites would have been left eating their words after a large number backed Ukraine as a ‘dark horse’ this tournament. They have a solid squad with glittering talent all over the pitch but flattered to deceive here with an underwhelming display.
Romania went in front thanks to a stunning whipped effort from Nicolae Stanciu
Stanciu was proud of his strike that found the top corner and was an early contender for goal of the tournament
Razvan Marin (pictured) made it 2-0 with a fierce strike from the edge of the area
Denis Dragus (pictured) sealed a dominant win for Romania against Ukraine in Munich
Romania, meanwhile, were well drilled off the ball and daring with it, capitalising on mistakes from Ukraine’s Real Madrid goalkeeper and taking their chances in a prolific manner. Stanciu’s opener was a stunning strike before Razvan Marin and Denis Dragus added fine goals.
This was a game with much sporting jeopardy riding on it given the open nature of Group E. If we are keen to anoint a ‘group of death’ at every tournament, this could be the ‘group of life’, with at least one of this pair or Slovakia advancing. Belgium are the heavily-fancied other team.
Though it felt like a six-pointer on the pitch, this felt like much more than a football match. Earlier in the day, a stand from Euro 2012 – joint-hosted by Ukraine – was unfurled in Munich city centre. ‘A Kharkiv stadium, built for Euro 2012, destroyed by Russian shells in 2022,’ it read.
Ukrainian FA president and former Chelsea striker Andriy Shevchenko struck a sombre pose at its unveiling. Before kick-off, the Ukraine football federation had posted a harrowing but inspiring video of encouragement.
It depicted how many of the one million soldiers fighting on the front line would be watching the game in bunkers, army bases and beyond. The soundtrack was a mix of soldiers cheering Ukraine goals against a backdrop of fighter jets flying overhead and explosions going off.
The Allianz Arena was filled with the yellow and blue colours of Ukraine as players draped themselves in their country’s flag – but unfortunately it was Romania, who share those same primary colours, who shone with technicolour, summed up by Andrei Rati’s bright blue hairdye.
Real Madrid keeper Andriy Lunin played 31 games for the European and Spanish champions this season but capped off a hellish month which started with him missing the Champions League final with a virus.
He passed the ball straight to Romania’s excellently-named Dennis Man on 29 minutes, who fed Stanciu to wrap his foot around the ball and fling a piledriver into the top corner from distance. Lunin then dived over the ball as Razvan Marin fired one into the bottom corner on 53 minutes.
Captain Stanciu led by example as Romania picked up a dominant win
It was a disappointing afternoon for Real Madrid and Ukraine Andrey Lunin who should have done better with at least one of the goals
It was a disastrous afternoon for former Tottenham striker Serhii Rebrov (pictured) as his Ukraine side were well beaten
But Romania manager Edward Iordanescu (pictured) could not hide his delight with the result
Romania’s players celebrated with their fans after a huge opening game win
It was a well-hit shot but shoddy goalkeeping. They added a third four minutes later to put the game to bed as influential Man was the man again to tee up Denis Dragus for a tap-in. This time Lunin was not at fault, but statuesque defending was punished by clever build-up play.
By this point, the Romanian fans were in excellent voice, toasting to their best-ever win at a major tournament. Back in Ukraine, national broadcaster Megogo cut out for the last 20 minutes. It was probably for the best.