Steaua Triumph over Boro in Bucharest

Steaua is now one step away from reaching the final of the UEFA Cup. They finally managed to score at home, for the first time in the knock-out rounds. Cosmin Olaroiu`s team couldn't have found a better timing for that. "We would very much like a victory without conceding", said Steaua`s coach before the game. And the team listened to him. In an incredible atmosphere - as always in the European cups - Steaua played not only for their supporters, but for the whole Romanian football. They did it in style and drove the people out on the streets again.

The supporters' choreography was exceptional. The message was very clear: "We want the FINAL". The magic word was not to be spoken by Steaua fans for 17 years. Until now.

The match started out pretty rough, both teams wanting to take no chances rather than going into attack. The first half-of-chance comes from Nicolae Dica, after he fires away from Schwarzer`s post from a difficult position. Middlesbrough starts to attack, and wastes a great chance on the counterattack, when Yakubu fires a shot inches away from Carlos' post.


Three minutes later, Steaua scores the only goal of the game. Ogararu sends a long ball, Radoi crosses it to Dica, and the Romanian striker finishes tremendously, giving the Australian keeper no chance of saving. A truly magnificent goal. From the second the ball touches the net, Dica is the night's hero. He succeeds something that no one did before under Olaroiu: he scored for the home side at Lia Manoliu in the UEFA cup. Steaua suffer however by the end of the first half. First, Ogararu sends it into his own cross, being under pressure from Yakubu. After that, Carlos saves an enormous chance by Morrison, the English midfielder missing from inside the penalty area.

The first half ends pretty badly for Steaua. Paraschiv and Nicolita both received yellow cards, and will miss the return leg in Riverside Stadium. But supporters still think there's a chance that Steaua can score again and finish the semifinal right here and right now. And they weren't far from the true.


The second half starts better for Steaua. Only 8 minutes into the match, Goian sends a dangerous shot but Schwarzer is there to save it. Steaua goes on the attack. First, Dica misses incredibly after he remains alone with the Australian goalkeeper. After a while, a perfect combination between Marin and Dica leaves Marin alone into the penalty area, but he fires a poor shot, failing to make it 2 for the home side. Boro has one more chance in the end, when Maccarone shoots outside the area, and Carlos holds the ball from two tries.

The game is finished and Steaua is being cheered by tens of thousands of supporters. From all over the country, even outside Romania, Steaua fans remain on the stadium minutes after the referee whistles the end of the game. The second leg will be extremely tough, but that doesn't matter now. Now, everybody is happy having faith that, after only a week, they will go out on the streets again, to celebrate qualifying for the final.

STEAUA: Carlos - Ogararu, D. Goian, Ghionea, P. Marin - Nicolita, Radoi, Paraschiv (Lovin 86`), Bostina - Oprita (Cristea 89`), N. Dica.



MIDDLESBROUGH: Schwarzer - Parnaby, Ehiogu, Bates, Queudrue - Morrison (Maccarone 70`), Boateng, Rochemback, Downing - Hasselbaink, Yakubu (Parlour 70`).


Yellow Cards: Dica (30`), Paraschiv (33`), D. Goian (38`), Nicolita (40`), P. Marin (88`)/ Schwarzer (75`), Parlour (90`).

Referees: Alain Hamer (Lux), Francis Crelo (Lux), Jean - Philippe Izzo (Fra).


Cosmin Olaroiu

"We could have done better. After seeing the game, I think we could have scored at least one more time. The opportunities we had are very rare and it's very important not to miss them. It will be hard for us without the 2 players suspended, but we'll try to make our best replacing them."

Mirel Radoi

"We could have won more clearly, but 1-0 is very good too. The important thing is that we did not conceive. The referee did a good job at this game."

Mihai Stoica

"I don`t want to talk about the referee. But we have 2 players suspended for the second leg, and Nicolita could have been decisive. I think we deserved to win by a bigger margin, but it's still ok since we haven't conceived."

Gigi Becali

"When it was 1-0 for us, you could have seen that this is a good result for them. But we'll score in Riverside too. After the match, I'll drink a glass of champagne with Mister Quinton Quale."

Fabrizio Ravanelli

"I only saw one team on the field. I was very impressed with Radoi. He will have a great future in European football. You can see he is a very experienced player. It's too bad you didn't score more. At 2-0, I think Steaua would have been in the final."


Steve McClaren
"You could see the fatigue in my team. It's our 57th match this season. We should be very grateful for this result. At 2-0 or 3-0, it would have been almost impossible to turn it around. Even if Steaua are a good away team, we can score at home and still qualify. You'll see another Boro team in England."

George Boateng
"We were very lucky. We could have lost by a higher margin. It is a good result for the second leg. We were through some really bad times in the past and managed to get over them. We will have Southgate and Viduka in the second leg, so that's another bonus for us."


The important sports newspaper and official sites about the game:
Eurosport.com - "The superb strike from Dica beat a very tired Boro. The English side should be happy with the result."

UEFA.com - "The sensational shot by Dica gives Steaua a small advantage for the second leg."

bbc.co.uk - "Boro should thank keeper Schwarzer for saving this 1-0 score."

The Sun - "Schwarzer kept Boro on the lifeline. Steaua`s ace, Dica only beat him once."