Hagi: 'Romania could have beaten anyone' | 1994 FIFA World Cup

[@peristiloperis7789]

As a brazilian, of course I was supporting Brazil, but Romania was my second team. I remember Hagi very well and his fantastic left foot. They played beautifully and I felt really sad when they lost to Sweden in a game which looked already decided.

[@mirceaciobotaru]

and as a romanian i can say that ,after Hagi,my favourites are ronaldo and pele.but ronaldo was astonishing..

[@raaspider]

+Peristilo peris what is sad is that they lost to a relative weak team like Sweden while having taken out tougher opponents

[@mokleor9480]

Oi ! Sou Romeno e falo um pouco de portugês. Falo melhor por voz, mas vou tentar escrever. Em 1994 tive 14 anos e amei muito, muito a equipe do Brasil. Fiquei muito feliz quando ganhou. Claro que se a Romenia tivesse jogado com o Brasil, eu tiria apoiado meu pais. Uns 4 anos atràs comecei a estudar o português do Brasil, mais ou menos depois da copa mundial de 2014. Amo o seu país, o pessoal daí, a cultura brasileira, a sua língua incrível (que tem suas particularidades bem definidas em comparação ao português de Portugal). Espero que Brasil vai ganhar na Rússia. Um abraço !

[@UScarsarethebest]

Mok Leor, Your Portuguese is really good! I was also 14 in 1994 and watched Brazil win the W.C. for the 1st time. Romario, My favourite Brazilian player ever, carried that team on his back offensively in many games. That Brazilian team was also great defensively with many good defenders and only suffered 3 goals in the entire tournament. Those were great times and i miss that. Teams had great talent, different than today. I remember that amazing Romanian team and Hagi was unbelievable. There was only one bad thing about him, which was he didn't play for Brazil :) Yep, the Brazil will face Mexico in a world cup of upsets and hopefully can pull that through, in a world cup of many upsets so far...

[@NotSoRandom_]

Yep

[@carrauntoohil86]

Hagi is the cleanest striker of a football I've ever seen. He made long distance shots look so effortless, pure technique. A truly gifted footballer.

[@harisbosnjak5200]

Ibrahimovic?

[@harisbosnjak5200]

Of course Hagi was amazing player.. incredibly skilled

[@dandshidriseshaikh9857]

Hagi one of the best

[@ronaldo19832]

Il maradona dei carpazzi

[@Cranium1210]

Remember Enzo scifo? Belgium player who could also hit the ball .

[@yukky729]

i from japan. when i watch this world cup, im 11 years old and 94 romania national team is magical team. 　i like this team ever now!

[@jackosaramorobaldo]

Not 11 anymore, happy Time Travel

[@RafaelPellizzari]

@安達志宏 Too bad the Agony of Doha prevented Japan from going to that World Cup. I hope to see Japan have more success in the future! Cheers from Brazil.

[@adrianstere]

Romania team will play in Tokyo at the Olympic Games this year 🥰

[@mohamoudahmed1636]

Hagi was the idol of 94 world cup. When we talk about Romania we remember Hagi. Great player.

[@ragnar8771]

as cryuff said hagi was the best player in the world in 94'

[@resorband]

no that was Thomas Ravelli, the reason the romanians lost to begin with. Godlike goalkeeper and criminally underrated

[@theterrobear2716]

​@@resorbandhell you mean romania lost on a penalty lottery. Bulgaria and Romania in 94 had national teams top 5 in world

[@resorband]

@@theterrobear2716 and yet sweden came further than they did. Like Belgium nowadays

[@theterrobear2716]

@@resorband that's football, that's sports. The better team doesn't always win. Thomas Ravelli remains in history as a nobody, Hagi and Stoichkov on the other side have been listed in Pele's 100 greatest ever players. These 2 teams played a very technical eye pleasing football, Sweden was playing like all the nordic countries at the time, a brutal physical game.

[@perewari1]

Hagi is one of the brilliant footballers i have seen.

[@elite.gaming-l4p]

Romania have a one legend player. Just one. Gheorghe Hagi.

[@nykko73]

unic legend

[@stuartwadlow9815]

Me too

[@ylmaztandogan7451]

He was icon of world and turkish football

[@mortifer8459]

@@elite.gaming-l4p ianis isn't too bad either

[@uduran9907]

Hagi was amazing in 94! A once in a lifetime player for Romania.

[@aidankirwan2145]

Hagi was sheer class one of the best I’ve ever seen .In Italia 90 we were lucky to beat them on penalties because hagi was unstoppable that day

[@danielmihet5513]

Aye... Ireland... I cannae forget our Timofte s missed penalty against you...

[@facundoscardigio8832]

as argentinian i remember very well that match.. 9 years old crying getting back home from a birthday party.. I used to love that romanian National Team, Hagi, Popescu, Petrescu, Domitrescu.. there were great teams at that world, Bulgaria, Romania, Argentina (with Maradona) Germany, the mighty Brazil, the american good team.. THE BEST WORLD CUP EVER, such great teams..

[@WalkingRandomly1983]

I am Brazilian and I was in love with Bulgaria 🇧🇬 and Romênia 🇷🇴 in this World Cup , in 2015 I went to live in Bulgaria and I visit Romênia 🇷🇴 as well. I love both countries and I knew all the names of the players. I was only 7 at this time

[@Demontube666]

I’m Mexican American and I remember Hagi n fell in love with Romania because of him. I was 7 in 94

[@robiagacitei5487]

hey there friend, a legend of yours is now a shareholder at hagi's own club in romania, rivaldo owns 10% now, and his son plays for the team too

[@ChaosAI24]

Did anyone ever noticed that over 70% of his goals were from outside the box?

[@edgardarcelopez8179]

Because he wasnt a forward, he was the brain and he was in his habitual position, great Gica.

[@bsamsungsamsung1445]

:)))))))) is the only player in football history with a high rate of long range goals

[@blabla-rg7ky]

him and stevie g could have held the midfield on their own in any team. You could easily play 8-2-0 with Hagi and Stevie G as the 2 midfielders and be the favorites against anyone :)

[@IwatchYuTup]

he was the best player you can ever watch from outside box. He was like that 3 pointer in basketball, you dont want to leave alone on the 3 point line. You had to constantly defend him even outside box. This comment is coming from the person hated to watch him as a opponent of Galatasaray. I literally hated him for that but respected at the same time.

[@nigelbenn4642]

we ALL did! It's hard not to

[@Calislav96]

Romania’s goals against Argentina was master class and elegance at its purest form in football!!

[@TheHungryTrollRawr]

Hagi's long range shooting was Elite level! Never seen a better striker of the ball from that range, he was deadly. But not only that, he was like the Romanian version of Maradonna. Overall a unique player, I always look at him in my old Championship manager games as my number 8 - huge fan of his!

[@Diego2609]

King Hagi 👑 🇷🇴 Love from Brazil 🇧🇷

[@dand7763]

i remember how close Romania was to play against Brazil in semifinals in 1994 ... Hagi and Popescu vs Romario and Bebeto i could play even 1000 US dollars to attend this match LIVE in that year... football stars , what show they could gave to entire world ,a legendary match ! instead we had to see a boring Brazil-Sweden 1-0 in that semifinal...

[@wethepeople7629]

1994 I was 18 years old living in California. One of the best years of my life and Romania surprised the world with those two magic wins against Colombia & Argentina! What a shame by that stupid goalie against Sweden. Will never forget that moment. Romania would of won that World Cup pretty much!!!

[@Darkscenes-jp4ge]

Colombia is no where in Football so that shouldn't be surprising that Romania beat them but it is surprsing that Romania defeated Argentina

[@bsamsungsamsung1445]

@Electro Power see what Pele said about plaing Romania or Sweden. He said, after Sweden won, : " We are champions now" . He didn't want any moment to play with Romania. There war big chances to lose against Romania.

[@codrutcroitoru]

@@Darkscenes-jp4ge Columbia was one of the biggest favorites to win the World Cup in 1994! So that is why Romania made a big surprise defeating them!

[@bsamsungsamsung1445]

@@codrutcroitoru Argentina too.

[@statetiberius215]

@Electro Power you are just a statistician😉. here we are talking about football and real playmakers. HAGI was fabulous, for example. Brazil or the other teams did not have such a complex player, an artist, with an incredible vision of the game.

[@asugeo710]

Generatia De Aur a Romaniei una din cele mai valoroase echipe de fotbal din acea perioada.Puteam sa batem orice echipa a lumii nimeni nu ne statea in cale dar asa este in viata castigi dar mai si pierzi!Respect pentru cea mai buna echipa de fotbal a Romaniei cu cei mai buni jucatori din acea perioada!

[@bsamsungsamsung1445]

Mda, numai ca schimbarea portarului a fost cea mai tampita idee pe care am vazut-o in istoria fotbalului.

[@criztu]

Care noi bre? Ce numar aveai pe tricou? Lasa-le draq de seminte, ti s-a urcat la cap te crezi coechipier cu Hagi

[@beatsbyalbert]

@@criztu noi(echipa romaniei/a tarei noastre)

[@ConstantineJoseph]

Gheorghe Hagi's technique is simply exquisite. That goal was unsaveable dipping in from the top down

[@denisbeslimov2279]

strangely Romania and Bulgaria were the best on world cup 1994. The final Bulgaria Romania would have been epic Edit: WOW, a lot of people seem to agree 3 years later.

[@Ojoe2010]

+thgfhrthtgh ....why is that strange? Romania has had great players many times...

[@denisbeslimov2279]

Because recently, the 2 countries suck, but they were good back in the days

[@Ojoe2010]

Ah ok, like that. Good times, bad times...

[@denisbeslimov2279]

at least for Bulgaria, the match between Sweden was not important, because either way, they win bronze medal

[@paulkronberg5313]

I dont think the referees would have let that happen,a final between Romani and Bulgaria,a lof othe times they bury smaller countries

[@snorrelarsen7500]

Baggio, Romario, Stoitsjkov, and Hagi really lighted up that world cup, my favourite tournament of all time!

[@FOUDEFOOT85]

do u prfer romania or bulgaria ?

[@vladimirkobarov7154]

Team Romania was so amazing in 94 World Cup, 98 World Cup and 00 Euro Cup. After that, Team Romania was at very long time at the bottom. Time flies. Currently, Ianis Hagi, the son of Gheorghe Hagi, became one of the top member of Rangers in Scottish League. I really hope that Team Romania to be able to restore its glory and legacy as soon as possible.

[@befreetv354]

come back in like 25 years...lol !

[@darthsebio1726]

@@befreetv354 I’m afraid you are a bit to optimistic..I think Duckadam is right...

[@Luna-yo4cj]

Cine e aici de la noi? Nu-mi vine sa cred cat de mare este Regele și cât de modest își trăiește gloria..dintotdeauna. Mereu când revăd imagini cu el din anii de glorie mă uimește și mă inspiră. E un exempli de ambiție! Te iubim, rege!

[@dumiicris2694]

cand ai suflet nu vrei sa tio iei in cap tio iei o data de 2 ori vezi ca iti pierzi concentrarea si nu tio mai iei incerci sa fi cu picioarele pe pamant de asta iti zic nu ar vrea tocmai de asta sa nu sio ia in cap dar omul care face asa ceva are o inima buna daca nu mare asta imi place la machidoni permit unui asa om sa traiasca chiar daca nul cunosc nu fac rahaturi

[@minan8409]

That's true Hagi , your team with you , your style were the best ever for that 1994 world cup! I never forgot that world cup because of the possibility that Romania had and lost that way. You were the Maradona of Argentina for Romania! I wanted so so much to see Romania against Brazil after you guys won Colombia and Argentina. You guys were simply the best in that world cup! Bravo.

[@shineonyoucrazydiamond824]

Sweden better😂

[@jamalahdysy]

@@shineonyoucrazydiamond824 where are u now??? Lol

[@nolbertos]

when I talk to Romaniand, I always mention Hagi. Hagi to me symbolizes Romania's beautiful futbol, country and people. They had a great 1994 team.

[@raggeragnar]

Here in Sweden , we could not believe our eyes. From leading 1-0 , Romania equalizing then taking the lead 2-1 in extra time AND one of our boys gets red card , it couldn’t have been more darkness. Then suddenly 2-2 and on top of that , we actually WIN the penalty round. Theese things NEVER happen to us usually. I remember people of all ages , sizes , classes , occupations and colours running around outside in the warm summer night , cheering , singing , hugging and waving the flag in euphoria.

[@codrutcroitoru]

We, being Romanians, also could not believe our eyes , but unfortunately for us, in the opposite way. We cried a lot, and even after those years,we are still thinking how would it be if Prunea, our goalkeeper, would have been more careful. For us , that was the biggest World Cup, as i think(maybe i am wrong) it was also for you. What can I say, as a child being i was totally angry and i hated Ravelli :)) After growing up I understood that I don t have to hate Ravelli, I have to appreciate the fact that he was a really talented goalkeeper, and in my opinion, that is where the difference has been made between us in that game. I hope for both of us sometimes we will meet again in a world cup quarter final, or even in a European Championship.But my country, Romania, is now very far from getting there.

[@raggeragnar]

codrutcroitoru : as a little comfort , many years later , your guy was invited to a talkshow here in Sweden , and got the opportunity to do the penalty shot all over again , on Ravelli. This time he absolutely nailed it. And no one was more happy than Ravelli. I think the clip of that is here on youtube. Stay safe.

[@bamboochaatit7266]

Well Roger,I'm glad to know now that the pain I've felt was not for nothing.Thank you

[@gideonopu9561]

Wow!

[@raggeragnar]

@@bamboochaatit7266 : No problem. Wouldn’t it be fantastic if we met at that high level once again ? At least we can dream about it.

[@paul6082]

omg I m glad to see George Hagi after long time ...I love him. he was one of the best in 1994 !

[@navid.t6785]

Aparat

[@DimShamrock]

Balkan football is much better than people give us credit for. Romania and Bulgaria in 1994. Croatia in 1998. Turkey(yes,technically Balkans) in 2002. Greece in 2004. Turkey again in 2008. Greece in 2012 and 2014. Croatia in 2016(should have progressed further).

[@dariuss.3734]

pretty much the whole inter milan team

[@DimShamrock]

Not only that.Also Real Madrid of 98,Barcelona in the early 90s,Galatasaray 2000,Panathinaikos of the early 00s,Olympiakos of the late 90s,Fenerbahce 2000-2007,Dinamo Zagreb late 90s...Steaua 80s,CSKA Sofia 70s,Partizan 60s,Crvena Zvezda 70s and 90s...The current Juventus based in Pjanic and Pjaca..Barcelona and Real's Croatians...and so on.

[@Marius47_KnK]

stupid romania is not balkan

[@DimShamrock]

YOU are the stupid one. prntscr.com/d9f7m5 All countries seen here,are part of Balkan peninsula.Idiot.

[@dabmaster7675]

Δημ. Yugoslavia had a great run in the 50s

[@sudiptabrahma2631]

Salute to my favourite football legend Georghe Hagi amazing skills accuracy and goals

[@alchoolik2009]

Hagi was a brilliant player he really was The King

[@parentingguides101]

I was at this game ROMANIA VS ARGENTINA , the best game of 1994 WC.

[@ManiMani548]

L-am urmărit mereu pe Haji cu mare plăcere, dar dacă ar trebui să-l compar, aș prefera să-l asemăn cu un alt mare fotbalist cu numărul 10, Zico. El a avut aceeași privire pe joc și pasele sale frumoase pus echipa sa înainte! Un jucător ca Haji ar onora orice echipă braziliană. Apropo, Runonia din anii 1990, a jucat ca mare echipă braziliană din 1982, iar eu am visat în secret la o finală România - Bulgaria. Asta ar fi fost ornamentul mundialei. Cu respect - salutări din Bulgaria!

[@CAR_NL]

I never forget Adrian Ilie. As a dutch boy, watching football those days he was one of the players of other countries I could enjoy so much watching. Damn, was he good. Such an underestimated player.

[@dand7763]

he played in world cup 1998 , Romania-Colombia 1-0 (they met again ,after world cup 1994) goal Adrian Ilie (min.45)

[@imumojumder3941]

I was 14 at that time & Hagi won my heart though I'm die hard supporter of Brazil. Love from Bangladesh 🇧🇩

[@pembehasan9647]

Hagi is not only belong to Romanians. After 2000, his also belong to Turks. We love him with our hearts.

[@emiliorebenga963]

Really enjoyed their team, just like many other teams. Bulgarya, Italy, Brasil, Nigeria, Holland..what a fantastic World Cup it was.

[@blincheru]

Hagi is not Maradona of the Balkans...is Gica Hagi of Romania !!!! Ours symbol !!!

[@blincheru]

best midfielders top 100 word cup : Zidane, Maradona, Pele, Michael Laudrup, Zico, Platini, Matthaus, Xavi Hernandez, Charlton, Francescoli, Gullit, Socrates, Figo, Neeskens, Pirlo, Mauro Silva, Vieira, Falcao, HAGI, Dunga, Ballack, Beckham, Gascoigne, Keane, Michel, Davids, Tardelli, Scifo, Ribery, Luis Fernandez. Belive me he was the best !!!!!

[@mirceaciobotaru]

***** yes,he was the best in the balkans.if u state diferently please give us an example of a better player than hagi from this region

[@gargantuanpp7761]

Mircea Ciobotaru Stoichkov

[@blincheru]

You see something about Pele in my post ? youfuckingfuck !!

[@blincheru]

I see that your brain is short...show me where I put Pele one of the greatest midfieldersof all time ????

[@Zamppa86]

Romania was such an entertaining team to watch back then. The 94 WC was the first one I remember watching and Hagi was one of the three players along with Romario and Stoichkov that struck me as an 8 year old. So sad Sweden again were so lucky! It would have been an awesome semifinal between Brazil and Romania!

[@statetiberius215]

HAGI🤴 real playmakers. HAGI was fabulous, for example. Brazil or the other teams did not have such a complex player, an artist, with an incredible vision of the game.

[@keving8631]

How were Sweden lucky?

[@SleepingCube]

@@keving8631 Their equalizing goal in the final few minutes was a mistake from the Romanian goalie. Also that game went to a penalty shootout which can go either way. Sweden were lucky that day.

[@keving8631]

@@SleepingCube you dont understand what luck means, yeah the last goal was a misstake but that is on the keeper and not luck. If romania had a better keeper this would not have happened. And penalties are the same for both teams so you are wrong

[@numeromanesc]

La multi ani rege !

[@asugeo710]

Gheorghe Hagi un om din Constanta Romania si unul dintre cei mai mari fotbalisti ai echipei nationale! A meritat numele de Rege! Romania in perioada aceea putea sa invinga orice echipa nationala a lumii! Respect Hagi esti constantean de-al meu! Viitorul este al tau! Hai Viitorul! Echipa de aur a Romaniei! Asa fotbalisti nu se mai nasc in Romania! Hagi merita statuie impreuna cu ''Generatia de aur''!

[@bartok75]

Whenever people talk about the best players of all times they always overlook Gheorge Hagi. He belongs to the olymp of football gods with the likes of Maradona, Pele, Zidane, Cruyff and so on. When he came to Galatasaray Istanbul in 1996 it was mainly due to him they became champions four times in a row (1997, 98, 99, 2000) and they won the Uefa Euro Cup (vs. Arsenal) and Super Cup (vs. Real Madrid) in 2000. A free kick was like a penalty for him. Best shooting skills ever, no matter from whatever angle. Forget C. Ronaldo's shooting skills. Hagi was the real deal. They say he was the Maradona of Carpathians. Actually Maradona was the Hagi of Argentina :)

[@jaysimoes3705]

I disagree. He has not achieved what the others have achieved and was not of the same level. He had some outtanding aspects, but also lacked others.Maradona, Pele and Cruyff are surely well ahead of him. But he also behind Messi, CR7, R9 and quite a few others. Gullit, Beckenbauer, Van Basten, Baggio, Eusebio also are ahead of him. He is a bit liek Dragan Stojkovic, Fernando Chalana, Giresse, Didier Six. The ones who are less constant than the others but can light up a match with brillliance if they reach their topform.

[@ceuix]

@@jaysimoes3705 I think he is the player with the best left foot in the world. If he was Brazilian instead of Romanian, he would be looked at much differently.

[@jaysimoes3705]

@@ceuix You do realise Maradona was leftfooted do you? You do not want to compare him, not even his left foot, leg or whatever to anything that Maradona did? It is not even a comparison to my mind.

[@ceuix]

@@jaysimoes3705 When we look at the goals of both of them, Hagi's goals are much better and more difficult.

[@Alwaysdoubt100]

I really supported a Romania at this World Cup, they were brilliant. I am Brazilian.

[@andreluizricardodeoliveira5325]

Roménia e Bulgária fizeram um mundial encantador! Futebol puro e raiz!

[@juanhernandezmillan1608]

Un genio absoluto del fútbol. Contra Argentina en el 94 dio una cátedra.

[@HeavilyGamer]

In my heart Romania won the world cup then!

[@kubratmitev4827]

@Juve Bulgaria were the real winners of this tournament. They were robbed by FRENCH referee (Bulgaria won against FRANCE 1993 and because of that they didn`t qualify). They were unstoppable and I think that the real final was BULGARIA VS ROMANIA. Stoichkov would have decided the match by penalty :)

[@Killer-qf5vz]

​@@kubratmitev4827Ah you tell me brother. I saw the offside of Kenderson goal in the minute 115' the comentary saying it too and now its history, never can be fixed again....😢

[@ahmetbuyuktosun]

Loving from Turkey. Hagi is on of Galatasarays legends

[@davidwilson123able]

Haji at that time for me was the best player in the world. What a left foot incredible. Thanks for the memories Haji.

[@standard2057]

you could at least spell his name right

[@sergiu2048]

hagi*

[@121privateidaho]

Yes, very special player and oh, that sweet, left foot*

[@tttigggerrr1]

Romania played amazing! Enjoyed watching them. And Hagi.... The football recital

[@obiwan88]

A whole generation of great players, let down by a joker calling himself a goalkeeper.

[@ghezoi]

Din pacate...

[@jorgeespinoza3938]

I remember a lot of these players played the Intercontinental Cup for Steaua Bucaresti against River Plate from Argentina, and even thought they lost the game 0-1, their goalie was a BEAST; almost invincible, I wonder why he didn't played the World Cup. (P.S. That same goalie stopped all 4 of the penalty shots against Barcelona in the Champions League Final)

[@velygritte2701]

Jorge Espinoza he had the “International Messi syndrome”

[@RadicalCaveman]

One bad play does not make him a joker.

[@lucianciuca3534]

Michael Lubin in that contest it does. When you play in a world cup, you have to be well trained, to let in only the goals that you simply can't save. He let us down. We could've qulified but one mistake took us the chance to win the trophy. Also, the penalty was very easy for the goalkeeper. It was a bad shot.

[@gideonopu9561]

When football was a competition,when talent was shared evenly.

[@kizilhun]

HAGI İS THE BEST PLAYER. BEFORE AND AFTER... IF HE IS BRAZILIAN. ALL WORLD ACCEPT THAT, HAGI IS THE BEST FOREVER... HE IS ROMANIAN BUT HE IS AGAIN BEST BEFORE AND AFTER.. HE IS BIGGEST PLAYER... HAGI = A TEAM

[@ahmettozlu4050]

Kızıl Deli Abartma

[@jt-la777]

So beautiful said ! 👏👏👏

[@aroldomarcospereiraprimo6156]

Você é muito exagerado

[@Human_traain]

What are you saying?

[@keithwellerlounge74]

Hagi still hasn't forgiven the goalkeeper then haha

[@brexistentialism7628]

He was my favourite player at the first world cup I remember watching as a kid.

[@Coxy-b34]

Hagi,one of my all-time favourite players. A genius and a joy to watch.

[@The69ersFCTV]

Not sure about that, but Hagi was an unbelievably talented player. One of my favourite players ever.

[@IwatchYuTup]

Hagi was extraordinary player. he was probably not the best player but for me he was the best player to watch, enjoy his long passes, his long distance shots. He was the most exciting player to watch. Too bad Romania didnt reach the final with Bulgaria. Amazing Balkan final that could be

[@ninjago6437]

Romania juca atunci,fotbalul care il joaca echipele de champions league, sau nationalele puternice din ziua de azi, desi am trait acele vremuri, mie nici acuma nu imi vine sa cred ce fotbal jucau acei jucatori, si ce fotbal joaca cei din ziua de azi. Refuz sa cred ca nu vom mai juca vreodata un asa fotbal!!!

[@santifresnel2320]

i remember it...it was the absolute moment of glory of romanian football...we felt we could take the cup home! The atmosphere back home was magical, we were all glued to the tv the streets everywhere were EMPTY... Thank you legends...

[@jt-la777]

"we were all glued to the tv" 😂😂😂 That's so true! 😂😂😂

[@razvscr3196]

Crazy how Romania went from one of the best team in the world and now is one of the worst.. 😶

[@superlex611]

RAZZVY unexpected one of the best teams in the world at that time

[@Y-Cubalibre]

@Birman Hitman not one of the worst. But not one of the best anymore

[@Darkscenes-jp4ge]

even in 1994 they had a strong squad but they were not the "best team" of 1994 Brazil had the strongest squad 2nd strongest Was Bulgaria and Italy's squad was 3rd strongest and I would put Romania's squad as 4th strongest in 1994

[@Darkscenes-jp4ge]

Nope Romania would not have defeated Brazil in the semis

[@dannyboyrefugioct2627]

Birman Hitman as long u in the top 32 I consider the country world class

[@agony664]

I remember as a kid pretending to be Popescu when we used to play at the park. Happy Times!

[@wbdrugstrat]

That was a weird tournament, as Romania, Bulgaria, Sweden, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and the USA completely creating chaos against the traditional powers. Colombia was the overwhelming favorite to win the whole thing, and could not find their rhythm at all. Brazil played a very unBrazilian game, scrapping their way through, and The Nigeria-Italy game was insane.

[@wbdrugstrat]

I completely forgot about them. They were a hard nose team to play those days.

[@wbdrugstrat]

indeed. They played their heart out.

[@wbdrugstrat]

I also recall Sweden having a nice team as well. And that is also the time when Africa was starting to show real superstars rising in the football world. A great time to be a fan without a doubt.

[@jonpool9030]

Carlos Perez Brazil didn't scrap their way thru, yes they didn't play samba football but they were the best team in that tournament conceding only 3 goals.

[@wbdrugstrat]

it has been a long time. i think that you may be right when thinking of it. romario and bebeto ran circles around defenses, and the recalling the sweeden and holland games, brazil had them under control. the Italy final was a weird one, as it was clear that the football gods were not willing to allow for a brazil win during regular play, as it came down to a ridiculous missed penalty by Italy's best player (who had a great game against nigeria). Italy had nice teams during the early 90s, but were unable to put it all together from what i can recall. i also remember colombia as the pre-tournent favorites, but their style of play and lazy defending never gave them a chance. i still recall valderrama being stubburn in trying to play predictable through balls to valencia (as asprilla got suspended if i recall well) that got nowhere, and it was not until playing their last group game where they finally attacked via the flanks.

[@vijayiyer8518]

Hagi was also instrumental in Turkish side Galatasaray winning it's first uefa cup, against arsenal. It was the first ever European trophy won by a Turkish side.

[@vls6809]

Proud of my country, Hagi our king🇷🇴

[@AdrianoBriles]

How disappointed I was with the elimination of this selection from the 1994 World Cup. I wanted the final to be Brazil and Romania. Very cool to see this team play.

[@jimmyyue238]

The problem is this match would have happened in semifinals.

[@netoponce09]

Wow Hagi. If only I was old enough to see him play, what a legend. My friend from El Salvador was named HAGI! I wish I was named by him too haha

[@L2Xenta]

Looking back at this I realise back then Romania's team was apreciated world wide, these days we cant get back up near that level , is kinda sad. I actualy stoped watching fotball even important like world cup, as a kid I always watch it with all friends, now is just a disapointment to me. Maybe its not fault of new generations, maybe fotball changed too much, maybe these days its too much about brute force , either way, its not the same and proly wont be ever again for me.

[@andreiciura913]

If by "football changed too much" you mean the Romanian federation is a corrupt organization, then yes, you are correct.

[@EzioBellic2KOOL]

Don't lose hope. Romania has a pretty good chance of coming up maybe in this World Cup. I think we are actually qualifiers!

[@Dangphuong23]

+Adrian A If you want to see a change then maybe be the change or encourage more friends or family to play soccer. For example in the US a lot of kids play soccer when they are younger but when they mature and gain more physical abilities they rather play sports such as american football or basketball robbing a large majority of the talent pool for soccer. I don't know much about Romanian football but it seems like they have a decent youth team but it doesn't translate to the senior level.

[@radurednic7162]

Hay un mito !!! En el pasado solo 5 jugadores entendían los pases de Hagi !!! Dumitrescu, Raducioiu, Hakan Sukur ...

[@yassinetaifour2397]

From Morocco respect to This Legend Team

[@paulmccarthy3547]

Possibly the last World Cup where almost every team had a mercurial champion or protostar in the squad, and some teams had even more than one. Valderrama/Asprilla, Hagi, Romario, Milla, Brolin/Larsson, Etcheverry, Matthaus/Klinsmann, Hwang Sun-hong, half the Spanish team, Maradona/Batistuta, Stoichkov, Yekini/Okocha, Sanchez/Luis Garcia, McGrath/Keane, Scifo, Rijkaard/Koeman/Bergkamp, Owairan. Just to name a few. Great tournament.

[@powerdriller4124]

Bulgaria and Rumania had their best teams ever in History in 94. Other teams that in USA 94 WC had their best historical teams ever were: Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Norway, Nigeria and Bolivia; and playing world cups out of their country, also: Mexico, Sweden and Switzerland.

[@SympaMT2]

Hagi,legend.

[@serkan5226]

George Hagi , George popescu, Cladio Taffarel hepsi Galatasaray da oynadılar. Hepsine teşekkür ederim. Galatasaraya yaşattıkları başarılar için.... ❤️💛

[@ryang790]

god that was SOME team and Hagi was the best of the lot.

[@quentin3330]

Hristo Stoichkov of Bulgaria was awesome in that tournament. Sweden were great. England and France didn't even qualify. It was a good World Cup with some great stories.

[@dand7763]

because England and France missed 1994 world cup tournament , was Romania and Bulgaria time to shine in their places...

[@nccamsc]

Bulgaria beat France in a qualifier in Paris a few months earlier, hence France missed WC94. Great goal in the last minute.

[@dand7763]

@@nccamsc yes, but they learned from that mistake ,and 4 years later ,in 1998, France became world champion for the first time ,while Romania and Bulgaria disappear from top of football

[@Skibidibi8]

what a beast, imagine the bulgaria-romania final it would be FANTASTIC!!!

[@waterpure8964]

I remember that i was young and watched movie the goal from HAGI.

[@Rander42]

I'm from Brazil and I really liked the football presented by Romania and Bulgaria.

[@arekwisniewski2701]

Romania 1994 Super Team ;) Great Football ;)

[@AngelaMariadosSantos-lw3dn]

que time sensacional esse da Romênia era lindo ver eles jogar

[@robertomassa731]

Prunea; Petrescu, Popescu, Belodedici, Prodan, Selymes; Galca, Hagi, Munteanu, Dumitrescu; Raducioiu.

[@EAOAFG]

Geez, I was ten when this World Cup was happening. Wonderful memories.

[@statetiberius215]

HAGI ..., El Patron de S .America ❤⚽️

[@ianplant6658]

Hagi is right up there among the worlds greatest footballers no doubt

[@colingeddes2172]

Hagi was without doubt the best player at the 94 world cup. And all his career he was genius.

[@Peekul1]

He was a tremendous player.

[@richmallett4095]

If somehow , Romania would've got to the semis , then maybe , just maybe ,they could've gone all the way . It's great to be reminded of how great a team Hagi & Romania were , very stylish football to watch too .

[@Helatimo]

Hagi's goal will echo into eternity. I still get chills up and down my spine every time I watch that goal. I disagree with him when he says it was all luck. It wasn't luck...it was pure skill and pure technique of which he is a master.

[@mrd8782]

Hagi is the best ever romanian player and one of the greatest of all time

[@TdS07-x8y]

genius football players always were born with legendary names which remains in the history of it

[@torsverke5557]

It wasn't the first time Kennet Andersson scored a goal like that so he knew exactly what he was doing.

[@SuperCleverdude]

Romania scored 2 (of 3) brilliant goals against Colombia, Gheorghe Hagi was a highly talented midfielder and he had a brilliant world cup; most people remember that match based on the victory obtained by the Carpathians. But the final score was really unfair and Colombia deserved better luck. Bogdan Stelea was the absolute man of the match, he made almost impossible saves to prevent Colombian goals. If you go over the whole match you'll realize that Romania played almost all the time with ten players close to Stelea's goal. They made a counter attack magisterial class.

[@vijayiyer8518]

Many of the players that were in that team had played in the 1989 steaua Bucharest team, which reached the final of the European cup final, which they lost to ac Milan. In 1986, steaua Bucharest beat Barcelona in the European cup final to become the first Romanian team, and the first, and only team, from a Warsaw pact nation, to win the European cup.

[@andrewpotter3954]

One of my favorite players of all time. Sweetness

[@84602]

Blessed to have you at Galatasaray. You are a GOD for us. No one has a shot like you.

[@simonforrest2522]

As a Nigerian World Cup 94 was my fave..Nigeria & Romania lit the tournament up that year

[@markganus1085]

I'm pretty darn sure Romania stood a much stronger chance of beating Brazil. Sweden's major mistake was playing on the back foot practically the whole time against Brazil and trying to take the match to the penalty shoot-out. Romania on the other hand were carefree and unafazed. Plus they were bold enough to not bow out to bigger opposition (recall the games against Colombia, Argentina and England in 1998, England's last decent squad).

[@arnoldmutasingwa6951]

2002 England wasn't decent?

[@markganus1085]

@107973246654323579991 yeah, brazil vs England was actually that world cup's final because whomever won would have gone on to win the tournament. But the 1998 squad had a kind of verve that hasn't been replicated in the upcoming years.

[@borinakoune1803]

Romania played like 1974 Netherlands "total football" style.

[@ishamsinha5878]

For all the talent they had in the squad, they seemed to wilt under no pressure against seemingly inferior teams. For example, they decided to "park the bus" against 10 man Sweden and lost 4-1 to Switzerland in the groups.

[@avlieox]

One of my favorite players ever!

[@switchblade800x3]

By far the best tournament that i remember.

[@pakinpakinn8819]

ยอดเยี่ยมครับผม

[@mariaral1440]

Best football times ever ❤️

[@brianforde5200]

Don't get me wrong I have the utmost respect for hagi's skill but I'm an Argentinian fan since '78

[@m.helmikurniawan5383]

Lot of players shine in this wc hagi, stoijkov, dahlin, brolin, baggio, bebeto, maldini...

[@alejandromosquerasouto6614]

Mi ídolo futbolístico

[@laurdumitru4859]

Ce simplu marcau jucatori nationalei romaniei la acea vreme,pasa si sut!!!in ziua de azi avem niste jucatori care fac 50 de prelori si sfarsesc sutand in tribune.