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Preview: Romania v Switzerland

Switzerland coach Vladimir Petković has called for his team to "make history" with victory against a Romania side looking to bounce back from their opening night defeat by France.

Preview: Romania v Switzerland
Preview: Romania v Switzerland ©UEFA.com
  • Romania and Switzerland meet in the second round of Group A games
  • Switzerland edged a 1-0 win against ten-man Albania in their opening fixture
  • Romania conceded in the 89th minute as they lost 2-1 to hosts France on Friday
  • The sides have met 12 times, both winning five matches and drawing two
  • Romania had the best defensive record in qualifying, conceding twice in ten games

Possible line-ups
Switzerland:
Sommer; Lichtsteiner, Schär, Djourou, Rodríguez; Behrami, Džemaili, Xhaka; Shaqiri, Seferović, Mehmedi.

Romania: Tătărușanu; Săpunaru, Chiricheș, Grigore, Raț; Pintilii, Hoban; Torje, Stanciu, Stancu; Keșerü.

Coach quotes
Vladimir Petković, Switzerland coach
Romania could have beaten France, so we need to improve on our own below-par performance against Albania. Basically, we need to extend what we did in the first 20, 30 minutes against Albania to the whole 90 minutes.

I was impressed by the Romania side as a whole on Friday. They were composed, with a clear tactical formation. Now we'll see if they can match those levels again. If you want to beat them, you have to be at your best.

Switzerland have never won two group matches at a European Championship. We want to make history.

All you need to know about Romania in 30 seconds

Anghel Iordănescu, Romania coach
It's an extremely important game for us and for Romanian football. After the France match, the first problem for our team was physical and mental recuperation. We hope we can be physically prepared for this one. We had a very good game against France on Friday; we had a few chances to score but we have to accept that France deserved the three points.

We're playing against a very good team and we need to do our best to get the win. We have to be realistic; we have to understand that tomorrow we'll be playing against a very good side. Their 23 players play in big leagues like the Bundesliga. Our objective is to qualify from the group.

UEFA.com team reporters
Matthew Howarth, Switzerland (@UEFAcomMattH)
Qualification is within Switzerland's grasp after beating Albania, but the Nati will have to raise their game against a Romania side notoriously difficult to break down. Petković may be tempted to start Breel Embolo in attack after the youngster's impressive cameo in Lens, although Admir Mehmedi remains the only one of Switzerland's forwards to have found the net in the last six matches.

Paul Zaharia, Romania (@UEFAcomPaulDZ)
France's late clincher on Friday caused dismay, yet in the cold light of day Romania have been able to take confidence from their performance. This is a key fixture – a win would be great but, more importantly, they must not lose. Iordănescu has focused on the mental side over the past few days, encouraging his players to switch off with a family barbecue and trip to Chantilly castle. The players are now refreshed and know that on paper at least there is little to choose between themselves and Switzerland. It is in their hands.

Form guide (all competitions, most recent first)
Switzerland: WWLLLWLWWL
Romania: LWLDDWDWDD

Did you know?
Switzerland enjoyed one of their finest FIFA World Cup victories when Roy Hodgson's team beat Romania 4-1 indoors at the Pontiac Silverdome, Detroit, in 1994. However, Iordănescu's Romania recovered to top the group and progress to the quarter-finals while the Swiss exited in the round of 16. Find out more in our extensive match background.

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