Munteanu's Steaua of strength

By Paul-Daniel Zaharia

FC Steaua Bucuresti reached the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1992/93, where they lost out on away goals to Belgian side R. Antwerp FC. In the intervening 12 years, no Romanian side has played in Europe after the winter break.

Springtime treat
However, Steaua - European Champion Clubs' Cup winners in 1985/86 - have earned the chance to compete in the springtime, although drawing UEFA Cup holders Valencia CF was an unkind twist. "I don't think that the draw could have been worse for us," midfield player Dorinel Munteanu told uefa.com.

Experienced international
Last Wednesday, the 36-year-old Munteanu played his 120th international match for Romania as they earned a 2-2 draw against Slovakia in Larnaca, Cyprus. He is now within five appearances of equalling Gheorghe Hagi's record of 125 caps and his experience will be vital for Steaua.

Coaching role
Steaua coach Walter Zenga has given Munteanu a dual role. He is one of his coaching assistants as well as his most important lieutenant on the field, and he has played a significant role in preparing his team-mates for their trip to the Mestalla stadium on Wednesday.

'Fantastic attackers'
However, he does not advocate a defensive performance. "Playing ultra-defensively in Valencia would be suicide," he said. "Despite their bad days in the Primera División, they have fantastic attackers. Players like [Marco] Di Vaio, [Francisco] Rufete, [Rubén] Baraja or Mista can make the difference."

Defensive frailty
Instead, Munteanu hopes that his side put their opponents under pressure in the first leg. "The Spaniards have some problems in defence," he said. "So our main chance of qualifying will depend on our ability to put pressure on the Valencia defence and cause them problems."

No comfort
Injured and suspended players may have weakened Claudio Ranieri's side but Munteanu is taking little comfort from that. "Some players will be missing but they have plenty of skilled reserves," he said. "They may not have [the suspended Miguel Ángel] Angulo but they have Mista."

Match fitness
Munteanu's major concern is a lack of match fitness. As he said: "[Valencia] are already back in action in domestic football. The second half of our championship does not kick off until ten days after the game." It was for this reason that Zenga abandoned his side's traditional mid-winter mountain retreat.

Training camps
Instead, and with the Valencia game in mind, Zenga led his side on two 12-day training camps from 16 January, the first in Larnaca and the second - two days later - near Naples in his native Italy. From there, they travelled directly to Valencia.

'Well prepared'
"I must admit that we are well prepared," said Munteanu. "But it's one thing to play friendly matches and something else to play competitive matches. Under such conditions, we'll have to get a good result in Valencia; qualification might be decided in the first leg."

Pitch battle
Munteanu is not even convinced that a draw would be a good result at the Mestalla. "People who say that we'll beat Valencia for sure in the second leg because of the bad weather and our heavy pitch are terribly wrong," he said. "Steaua, like Valencia, do not thrive on a bad pitch."

'Proper football'
Central defender Tiberiu Curt and right midfield player Florentin Dumitru are both sure to miss the game at the Mestalla, but Munteanu seeks no excuses. "Our fate is in our hands," he said. "It depends on how clever we are. All what matters now is to play proper football."