Gheorghe Hagi names 32-player Romania squad for four autumn Nations League fixtures

Goalkeeper overhaul and foreign selections

Romania head coach Gheorghe Hagi selected a 32-player squad on Friday for the national team's upcoming series of four UEFA Nations League League B Group 4 fixtures. The match window, scheduled from 25 September to 5 October 2026, marks Hagi's return to competitive matches on the Romanian bench following his reappointment. For the goalkeeping positions, the Romanian Football Federation confirmed that all three selected players currently compete outside the domestic league. The chosen goalkeepers are Ionuț Radu of Spanish club Celta Vigo (9 caps), Otto Hindrich of Polish side Legia Warsaw (2 caps), and uncapped Valentin Cojocaru of Pogoń Szczecin in Poland. Regular goalkeeping selections from previous national team squads, including Ștefan Târnovanu and Laurențiu Popescu, were excluded from the list.

Defensive and midfield composition

The defensive line features twelve players spanning European and Asian clubs, led by experienced defenders Nicușor Bancu of Universitatea Craiova (52 caps, 2 goals) and Andrei Burcă of Chinese club Yunnan Yukun (46 caps, 1 goal). They are joined by Andrei Rațiu of Rayo Vallecano (38 caps, 2 goals), Radu Drăgușin of Fiorentina (30 caps, 1 goal), Virgil Ghiță of Hannover 96 (10 caps, 1 goal), and Bogdan Racovițan of Raków (5 caps). The defensive unit is rounded out by Raul Opruț of Dinamo (5 caps), Lisav Eissat of Bristol City (4 caps), Andrei Coubiș of Lincoln City (3 caps), Andrei Borza of Turkish side Çorum (2 caps), Matei Ilie of Kasımpaşa (2 caps), and Tony Strata of Vitória Guimarães (1 cap). In midfield, veteran captain Nicolae Stanciu of Dalian Yingbo brings 87 caps and 15 goals alongside AEK Athens midfielder Răzvan Marin with 75 caps and 12 goals. The nine-man midfield roster also includes Alexandru Cicâldău (39 caps, 4 goals), Marius Marin of Al Nasr (35 caps), Tudor Băluță (14 caps), Vlad Dragomir of Pafos (8 caps), Vladimir Screciu (8 caps), David Matei (2 caps), and Dinamo midfielder Cătălin Cîrjan (2 caps).

Attacking options and notable omissions

The attacking group contains nine players, featuring Dennis Man of Dutch club PSV (45 caps, 11 goals) and Ianis Hagi of Turkish club Alanyaspor (54 caps, 8 goals). Further offensive options include Valentin Mihăilă of Çaykur Rizespor (36 caps, 5 goals), Darius Olaru of Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise (28 caps), Florin Tănase of Cypriot club Omonia (28 caps, 5 goals), and Denis Drăguș of FCSB (28 caps, 7 goals). Drăguș represents the sole player selected from FCSB. The attacking contingent is completed by Olimpiu Moruțan of FC Rapid 1923 (18 caps, 1 goal), Daniel Bîrligea of Italian side Frosinone (9 caps, 2 goals), and Louis Munteanu of MLS club D.C. United (6 caps, 3 goals). Several notable domestic Superliga attackers were omitted by Hagi, including Alexandru Dobre, Ștefan Baiaram, and David Miculescu.

Nations League fixture schedule

The Romanian squad faces four Group 4 matches in ten days across late September and early October. The campaign opens on Friday, 25 September, with an away fixture against Sweden at Strawberry Arena kicking off at 21:45. On Monday, 28 September, Romania hosts Bosnia and Herzegovina at Arena Națională in Bucharest at 21:45, a match designated to take place without spectators. The team then travels to Warsaw to play Poland at Stadion Narodowy on Friday, 2 October, at 21:45. The four-match international window concludes on Monday, 5 October, when Romania welcomes Sweden back to Arena Națională in Bucharest for a 21:45 kickoff.