GOALKEEPERS
BOGDAN LOBONT (Dinamo Bucharest, 18/01/78)
Lobont rose to prominence with Rapid Bucharest and earned a move to Dutch giants Ajax in 2000. He was briefly first choice before moving to Fiorentina and then back to Romania with Dinamo Bucharest last year. He has made 62 appearances for the national team and is currently number one.
DANUT COMAN (Rapid Bucharest, 28/03/79)
Coman has played all his club football in Romania and is first choice at Rapid Bucharest having previously played for Arges Pitesti and AS Rocar Bucharest. He has nine caps to his name.
MARIUS POPA (FCU Politehnica Timisoara, 31/07/78)
Politehnica Timisoara is Popa's third club in his home country. He has been named in the national team squad 11 times and made his debut in the friendly victory over Russia in March.
DEFENDERS
CHRISTIAN CHIVU (Inter Milan, 26/10/80)
Chivu is Romania's captain and one of their most high-profile players with nearly 60 caps to his name. The classy defender - who can also operate in midfield - rose to prominence in a four-year spell at Ajax before moving to Roma in 2003. Chivu then switched to Italian champions Inter last summer with the fee reported to be 16million euros. He is a set-piece expert and represented Romania at Euro 2000 - the last major finals they qualified for.
RAZVAN RAT (Shakhtar Donetsk, 26/05/81)
Rat had two spells with Dinamo Bucharest before earning a transfer to Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in 2003. He has made 48 appearances for the national team.
GABRIEL TAMAS (Auxerre, 09/11/83)
The former Romania Under-21 captain has moved around Europe after rising to prominence with Dinamo Bucharest. His clubs include Galatasaray, Spartak Moscow and Celta Vigo while he joined French side Auxerre last year. Tamas made his debut for Romania in 2003.
DORIN GOIAN (Steaua Bucharest, 12/12/80)
Goian had been nomadic in Romania's domestic scene before joining Steaua Bucharest in 2004. He has a reputation as a goal-scoring centre-back, netting twice in the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, and is reported to be interesting Stuttgart and Manchester United. Has 19 caps to his name.
GEORGE OGARARU (Ajax, 03/02/80)
Ogararu's transfer to Ajax in 2006 was the second most expensive from a Romanian club - after Gheorghe Hagi's switch to Real Madrid - with the Dutch club paying around £2million to Steaua Bucharest. The right-back struggled to find favour in the national set-up but was recalled by coach Victor Piturca for the latter part of the qualifying campaign.
STEFAN RADU (Lazio, 22/10/86)
Dubbed the new Christian Chivu in Romania, young full-back Radu has been linked with a host of top European clubs and is currently on loan at Lazio from Dinamo Bucharest. Broke into the national team in 2006 and made two appearances in the qualifying campaign.
COSMIN CONTRA (Getafe, 15/12/75)
Vastly experienced defender Contra has been playing for the national team since 1996 and has more than 60 caps to his name. A fiery full-back, Contra starred for Alaves in their 2001 UEFA Cup campaign and was named in the UEFA team of the year. Those performances earned him a transfer to AC Milan while his subsequent clubs include a loan spell at West Brom in 2004-05.
MIDFIELDERS
PAUL CODREA (Siena, 04/04/81)
Midfielder Codrea has plied his trade in Italy for the past seven years with spells at Genoa, Palermo, Perugia and Torino as well as his current club Siena. He has made 32 appearances for Romania and played in eight of the qualifiers for Euro 2008.
RAZVAN COCIS (Lokomotiv Moscow, 19/02/83)
Cocis is one of the graduates of the highly-regarded youth set-up at Cluj. He moved to Russia to join Lokomotiv Moscow in 2007 and is considered an important player for Romania with 20 caps.
OVIDIU PETRE (Steaua Bucharest, 22/03/82)
Knee injuries have blighted the career of defensive midfielder Petre. He joined Turkish side Galatasaray in 2003 but returned home two years later and signed for Bucharest giants Steaua in 2006. Petre scored his only goal for Romania against Armenia in 2005.
BANEL NICOLITA (Steaua Bucharest, 07/01/85)
Nicolita is a speedy midfielder with an eye for goal and is one of the few players from Romania's sizeable Roma community. He has an impressive record for Steaua and scored his first goal for his country in the qualifier against Slovenia last June.
FLORENTIN PETRE (CSKA Sofia, 15/01/76)
Tricky winger Petre spent 11 seasons with Dinamo Bucharest before joining Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia in 2006. He represented Romania at Euro 2000 and is one short of his 50th cap.
NICOLAE DICA (Steaua Bucharest, 09/05/80)
Attacking midfielder Dica found his scoring boots in qualifying, notching four goals from six games. He has averaged nearly a goal every other game for Steaua Bucharest, who have turned down offers from Olympiacos and Benfica. Aston Villa are also rumoured to be interested.
LAURENTIU ROSU (Recreativo, 26/10/75)
Rosu has spent the last eight years in Spain, first with Numancia and then Recreativo. He has 38 caps for Romania and scored the first goal of their qualifying campaign against Bulgaria. Rosu is also a talented musician and will be performing at this summer's Oxegen festival in Ireland.
ANDREI MARGARITESCU (Dinamo Bucharest, 01/01/80)
Defensive midfielder Margaritescu has played all his football in Romania, spending the last four years with Dinamo. A new name for the qualifying campaign, he will be hoping to build on his three caps.
STRIKERS
ADRIAN MUTU (Fiorentina, 08/01/79)
Probably Romanian football's biggest name since Gheorghe Hagi, Mutu is once again in superb form with Fiorentina and scored six goals during the qualifying campaign. He has played for many of Italy's top clubs but it is his spell at Chelsea that earned him notoriety. Mutu had a difficult time at Stamford Bridge and was banned for seven months and sacked in 2004 after testing positive for cocaine.
CIPRIAN MARICA (Stuttgart, 02/10/85)
Pacy forward Marica became Stuttgart's record signing when he moved to Germany from Shakhtar Donetsk last year for 8 million euros. Derby and Middlesbrough were also rumoured to be interested in the striker, who scored five goals in 11 games during the qualifying campaign.
DANIEL NICULAE (Auxerre, 06/10/82)
Striker Niculae rose to prominence at Rapid Bucharest, earning a transfer to Auxerre in 2006. He made his debut for Romania in 2003 and has earned 21 caps, scoring five goals.
MARIUS NICULAE (Inverness, 16/05/81)
Niculae's form for Inverness - he was the Clydesdale Bank player of the month for December - earned him a recall to the Romania squad for March's friendly with Russia, where he scored in a 3-0 victory. He will hope to win a place in the Euro 2008 squad despite not featuring in any of the qualifiers.
IONUT MAZILU (Dnipro, 09/02/82)
Mazilu has just moved outside Romania to play his club football, joining Ukrainian side Dnipro. He was a regular goalscorer in a two-year spell at Rapid Bucharest and has two goals in 10 games for the national team.
Lobont rose to prominence with Rapid Bucharest and earned a move to Dutch giants Ajax in 2000. He was briefly first choice before moving to Fiorentina and then back to Romania with Dinamo Bucharest last year. He has made 62 appearances for the national team and is currently number one.
DANUT COMAN (Rapid Bucharest, 28/03/79)
Coman has played all his club football in Romania and is first choice at Rapid Bucharest having previously played for Arges Pitesti and AS Rocar Bucharest. He has nine caps to his name.
MARIUS POPA (FCU Politehnica Timisoara, 31/07/78)
Politehnica Timisoara is Popa's third club in his home country. He has been named in the national team squad 11 times and made his debut in the friendly victory over Russia in March.
DEFENDERS
CHRISTIAN CHIVU (Inter Milan, 26/10/80)
Chivu is Romania's captain and one of their most high-profile players with nearly 60 caps to his name. The classy defender - who can also operate in midfield - rose to prominence in a four-year spell at Ajax before moving to Roma in 2003. Chivu then switched to Italian champions Inter last summer with the fee reported to be 16million euros. He is a set-piece expert and represented Romania at Euro 2000 - the last major finals they qualified for.
RAZVAN RAT (Shakhtar Donetsk, 26/05/81)
Rat had two spells with Dinamo Bucharest before earning a transfer to Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in 2003. He has made 48 appearances for the national team.
GABRIEL TAMAS (Auxerre, 09/11/83)
The former Romania Under-21 captain has moved around Europe after rising to prominence with Dinamo Bucharest. His clubs include Galatasaray, Spartak Moscow and Celta Vigo while he joined French side Auxerre last year. Tamas made his debut for Romania in 2003.
DORIN GOIAN (Steaua Bucharest, 12/12/80)
Goian had been nomadic in Romania's domestic scene before joining Steaua Bucharest in 2004. He has a reputation as a goal-scoring centre-back, netting twice in the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, and is reported to be interesting Stuttgart and Manchester United. Has 19 caps to his name.
GEORGE OGARARU (Ajax, 03/02/80)
Ogararu's transfer to Ajax in 2006 was the second most expensive from a Romanian club - after Gheorghe Hagi's switch to Real Madrid - with the Dutch club paying around £2million to Steaua Bucharest. The right-back struggled to find favour in the national set-up but was recalled by coach Victor Piturca for the latter part of the qualifying campaign.
STEFAN RADU (Lazio, 22/10/86)
Dubbed the new Christian Chivu in Romania, young full-back Radu has been linked with a host of top European clubs and is currently on loan at Lazio from Dinamo Bucharest. Broke into the national team in 2006 and made two appearances in the qualifying campaign.
COSMIN CONTRA (Getafe, 15/12/75)
Vastly experienced defender Contra has been playing for the national team since 1996 and has more than 60 caps to his name. A fiery full-back, Contra starred for Alaves in their 2001 UEFA Cup campaign and was named in the UEFA team of the year. Those performances earned him a transfer to AC Milan while his subsequent clubs include a loan spell at West Brom in 2004-05.
MIDFIELDERS
PAUL CODREA (Siena, 04/04/81)
Midfielder Codrea has plied his trade in Italy for the past seven years with spells at Genoa, Palermo, Perugia and Torino as well as his current club Siena. He has made 32 appearances for Romania and played in eight of the qualifiers for Euro 2008.
RAZVAN COCIS (Lokomotiv Moscow, 19/02/83)
Cocis is one of the graduates of the highly-regarded youth set-up at Cluj. He moved to Russia to join Lokomotiv Moscow in 2007 and is considered an important player for Romania with 20 caps.
OVIDIU PETRE (Steaua Bucharest, 22/03/82)
Knee injuries have blighted the career of defensive midfielder Petre. He joined Turkish side Galatasaray in 2003 but returned home two years later and signed for Bucharest giants Steaua in 2006. Petre scored his only goal for Romania against Armenia in 2005.
BANEL NICOLITA (Steaua Bucharest, 07/01/85)
Nicolita is a speedy midfielder with an eye for goal and is one of the few players from Romania's sizeable Roma community. He has an impressive record for Steaua and scored his first goal for his country in the qualifier against Slovenia last June.
FLORENTIN PETRE (CSKA Sofia, 15/01/76)
Tricky winger Petre spent 11 seasons with Dinamo Bucharest before joining Bulgarian side CSKA Sofia in 2006. He represented Romania at Euro 2000 and is one short of his 50th cap.
NICOLAE DICA (Steaua Bucharest, 09/05/80)
Attacking midfielder Dica found his scoring boots in qualifying, notching four goals from six games. He has averaged nearly a goal every other game for Steaua Bucharest, who have turned down offers from Olympiacos and Benfica. Aston Villa are also rumoured to be interested.
LAURENTIU ROSU (Recreativo, 26/10/75)
Rosu has spent the last eight years in Spain, first with Numancia and then Recreativo. He has 38 caps for Romania and scored the first goal of their qualifying campaign against Bulgaria. Rosu is also a talented musician and will be performing at this summer's Oxegen festival in Ireland.
ANDREI MARGARITESCU (Dinamo Bucharest, 01/01/80)
Defensive midfielder Margaritescu has played all his football in Romania, spending the last four years with Dinamo. A new name for the qualifying campaign, he will be hoping to build on his three caps.
STRIKERS
ADRIAN MUTU (Fiorentina, 08/01/79)
Probably Romanian football's biggest name since Gheorghe Hagi, Mutu is once again in superb form with Fiorentina and scored six goals during the qualifying campaign. He has played for many of Italy's top clubs but it is his spell at Chelsea that earned him notoriety. Mutu had a difficult time at Stamford Bridge and was banned for seven months and sacked in 2004 after testing positive for cocaine.
CIPRIAN MARICA (Stuttgart, 02/10/85)
Pacy forward Marica became Stuttgart's record signing when he moved to Germany from Shakhtar Donetsk last year for 8 million euros. Derby and Middlesbrough were also rumoured to be interested in the striker, who scored five goals in 11 games during the qualifying campaign.
DANIEL NICULAE (Auxerre, 06/10/82)
Striker Niculae rose to prominence at Rapid Bucharest, earning a transfer to Auxerre in 2006. He made his debut for Romania in 2003 and has earned 21 caps, scoring five goals.
MARIUS NICULAE (Inverness, 16/05/81)
Niculae's form for Inverness - he was the Clydesdale Bank player of the month for December - earned him a recall to the Romania squad for March's friendly with Russia, where he scored in a 3-0 victory. He will hope to win a place in the Euro 2008 squad despite not featuring in any of the qualifiers.
IONUT MAZILU (Dnipro, 09/02/82)
Mazilu has just moved outside Romania to play his club football, joining Ukrainian side Dnipro. He was a regular goalscorer in a two-year spell at Rapid Bucharest and has two goals in 10 games for the national team.
Copyright (c) Press Association
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