Chivu predicts return of 'real' Mutu

Romania captain Cristian Chivu is predicting that Adrian Mutu will rediscover his best form in their second UEFA EURO 2008™ Group C fixture against Italy in Zurich.

'One of the best'
The ACF Fiorentina striker, whose grandmother died last weekend, put in a subdued performance as his country opened their finals campaign with a goalless draw against France on Monday and was brought off with 15 minutes remaining, yet Chivu is convinced Romania's most potent attacking threat will be back to his best come kick-off against the world champions. "I don't know if Italy's defenders are sleeping calmly at night because Mutu is one of the best forwards in Italy and Europe," said Chivu. "He scored 17 [Serie A] goals this season and has played for many years in Italy. If Mr Piţurcă selects him, I'm sure we will see the real Adrian Mutu and not the Mutu you saw against France."

Inside information
Along with Mutu and Paul Codrea, who plays for AC Siena, FC Internazionale Milano defender Chivu also has considerable experience of Italian opposition. Indeed he is especially familiar with the core of the Azzurri squad having spent four seasons at AS Roma before joining Inter last summer. However, the 27-year-old believes this inside knowledge will be of negligible benefit as the Tricolorii go in search of their first win against Italy since 1989. "Everybody knows the Italian style of play. They have a special football culture and that is why they are the current world champions. Of course, it helps to know as much as you can about your opponents but in this case I don't think it's a particular advantage or disadvantage."

'Organised and motivated'
Eight years ago Chivu was part of the last Romania squad to reach a major finals when the inspirational Gheorghe Hagi led them to the quarter-finals of UEFA EURO 2000™ before a 2-0 defeat against the Azzurri in Brussels. The intervening years have been tough to bear for the younger generation of Romania players who have had to live in the shadow of their illustrious predecessors and Chivu is desperate for this squad to prove their worth by progressing to the last eight again. "This team is at least as strong as the team of 2000 but it's better organised and more motivated," said Chivu. "There's been a lot of frustration for the last eight years and now we want to prove we are not a generation of losers. We want to show we can play at the highest level and we are going to prove it."