Romania's undisputed first-choice goalkeeper, Bogdan Lobont's ability to shut out the opposition will be vital to his team's prospects of a successful tournament.
Romania's undisputed first-choice goalkeeper, Bogdan Lobont's ability to shut out the opposition will be vital to his team's prospects of a successful tournament. Lobont missed just one game in qualifying - the 3-1 home win over Belarus - and kept six clean sheets, including in both matches against fellow qualifiers Holland. A solid shot-stopper who started his career at Corvinul Hunedoara, Lobont was a non-playing member of Romania's Euro 2000 squad. That summer he joined Ajax from Rapid Bucharest, but his time with the Dutch giants was ruined by a succession of injuries. He returned for a loan spell in Romania with Dinamo Bucharest for the 2002/03 season before joining Fiorentina in January 2006 to provide cover for Sebastien Frey. However, after being unable to make an impact in Italian football, Lobont returned to Dinamo midway through the 2006/07 season and ended the campaign as a Romanian title winner. Defeat to Lazio in the third qualifying round denied Lobont the chance to showcase his ability in the UEFA Champions League group phase this season, but he will be looking to demonstrate he has the potential to be a top-class keeper at Euro 2008.Bogdan Lobont