In a qualifying campaign widely acknowledged as one that has been great for the underdogs, this one has been a total, absolute unmitigated disaster for the perennial underdogs of Moldova. Seeded in Pot 5, alongside qualifiers Iceland and almost certain qualifiers Northern Ireland, it is astonishing that only three sides have amassed fewer points than this small nation wedged between Ukraine and Romania. The nadir was unquestionably the 0-1 defeat at home to Liechtenstein last November, but the 1-1 draw in Vaduz last June did not make sufficient amends. This latest defeat, to a Montenegro side still hunting for a playoff spot, comes at a time of upheaval for the country, with Chisinau’s central square occupied by protesters for the last three days, angry at their government’s rampant corruption and bizarre lack of response to the small matter of a billion dollars, or one eighth of the country’s wealth, simply disappearing from several of Moldova’s banks.
For the visit of Montenegro, the home side lined up with only four players based in Moldova, three of whom were from Milsami, the current league champions. The team from Orhei had redefined the concept of a thrilling finale by moving from third to first on the final day of the season, so breaking FC Sheriff’s relentless hegemony, winning thanks to their superior head-to-head with the top three teams tied on 55 points. Incidentally, Milsami are run by Ilan Shor, who has been intricately linked with the disappearance of those few quid from the bank – but that’s a story for another day.
Moldova, in blue shirts, could hardly have started the game with Montenegro more poorly. Within thirty seconds of kick-off, Zarko Tomasevic broke free down the left and crossed to a shockingly unmarked Adam Marusic. Mercifully, like the Moldovan defence, he was not quite warmed up and fluffed the chance. The opener, however, was inevitable. Tomasevic’s movement was causing chaos, but it was a cross from Stevan Jovetic, which looked bound for the net as the Moldovan defence looked on in disarray, that was poked in by Stefan Savic at the back post.
The home side, to their credit, responded well. Within moments, a great overlap from Alexandru Gaţcan lead to a header from Artur Patraş thunking against the bar, and a wayward shot from Ion Jardan was redirected just over by Eugeniu Cebotaru. The magnificent Stadionul Zimbu was rocking now, with a small band of Moldovan Ultras creating quite the racket in the upper tier behind the goal. This ground is beautifully ramshackle, with stands that rise steeply over the pitch, lending a fabulous intimacy that sadly only rarely gets amped up to the maximum. For today’s encounter, the stadium was a little over half full, not including the scores of people watching from the balconies of the enormous Plattenbau that towered over the ground.
For a while, it seemed as though the crowd might just inspire their boys to their fourth goal of the qualifying campaign. Montenegro were cooperating by sitting back, but, despite forcing several corners, Moldova failed to create another significant chance in the first half. Within moments of the restart, Montengro had reasserted their authority. Tomasevic had a one-on-one effort saved by Ilie Cebanu in the Moldova goal before Fatos Bećiraj muddled his way through the defence and miskicked wildly in front of goal – the unfortunate Petru Racu’s helpless midriff directed the ball into the net.
Suddenly, the atmosphere was different. Almost immediately, chants of ‘demisie, demisie’ – ‘resign, resign’ – reverberated around the stadium, directed at the much-maligned coach, Alexandru Curtianu. Simply looking at Moldova’s results over the last couple of years, it would be extremely difficult to make the argument that he shouldn’t step down. There were, however, still twenty-five minutes to limp through, and an atmosphere that had always seemed on knife-edge, had turned palpably hostile. Igor Armaş in the Moldovan defence had earlier borne the brunt of it for consistently passing back to his goalkeeper from promising positions, but now, no one was spared. The stadium was emptying with ten minutes to play, and even the Ultras put on their shirts and packed away their flags and drum. Just like the protesters a few kilometres away on Piața Marii Adunări Naționale, the people in the Stadionul Zimbru had unanimously had enough, and were taking action to show it. The early departures missed a lovely bit of footwork and shot from Nicolae Milinceanu, which forced a smart save from Vukasin Poleksic, but making a point was much more important.
The next visitors to Chisinau will be a Russian side with renewed hope of automatic qualification. For this game, the Stadionul Zimbru will be full to the brim both with Moldovans angrily anxious to get one over on their former overlords, and Moldovans who feel a much greater affinity to their larger neighbours to the east. With the country currently on a precipice of political uncertainty, the football is unlikely to be the major attraction.
