On March 25, 2025, the national football teams of Moldova and Estonia faced off in a thrilling World Cup 2026 qualification match at the Zimbru Stadium in Chișinău. The match concluded with Estonia triumphing over Moldova 3-2, marking a significant moment for the visitors and extending Moldova's disappointing run in the qualifiers.
The opening moments of the game took a dramatic turn for Moldova when defender Maxim Cojocaru was shown a red card just five minutes into the match for a foul against Estonian forward Marko Siniavski. This early dismissal posed a considerable challenge for the home side as they struggled to regroup.
Estonia capitalized on their numerical advantage quickly, scoring the opening goal in the 19th minute. Estonian player Kaimar Saag took a strike that deflected off Moldova's defender Artur Craciun, which left Moldova’s goalkeeper Alexander Kojuhari unable to make the save. Peetson seized the opportunity and put Estonia ahead 1-0.
Building on their momentum, Estonia doubled their lead in the 30th minute through a corner kick. Snapping it in was Sappinen, who scored with a header that was initially saved by Kojuhari but ultimately got through after hitting the back of the net, taking advantage of the disarray in the Moldovan defense. With this goal, the score stood at 2-0 in favor of the visitors.
Despite the disadvantage, Moldova continued to fight and managed to get back into the match. In the 67th minute, Ion Nikolaescu, a player currently signed with the Dutch club Heerenveen and a former Shakhtar and Vitebsk player, found the back of the net for Moldova, bringing the score to 1-2. The intensity of the match heightened as the home crowd erupted in hopes of a comeback.
However, Estonia responded swiftly to restore their two-goal cushion. Just three minutes after Moldova scored, in the 70th minute, Estonia's Matthias Kyayt scored, making the score 3-1 and seemingly knocking the wind out of Moldova's sails yet again.
In the closing stages of the match, Moldova managed to claw back one more goal, with Mihail Caimacov taking a stunning free-kick that beat the Estonian goalkeeper just before stoppage time, finalizing the score at 2-3 as the match ended.
This gripping encounter illustrated the challenges Moldova faced as they tried to recover from a disastrous start to their qualification campaign, having previously lost 5-0 to Norway in their last game. As it stands, Moldova remains at the bottom of Group I with zero points after two matches.
In contrast, Estonia celebrated a critical victory that helped them earn their first points in the qualification cycle, now placing them in a competitive position within Group I, alongside established teams like Norway and Israel.
The referee for the match was Belgian official Lourens Visser, who faced a couple of contentious moments leading to multiple yellow cards for both teams. Moldova received three yellow cards and one red card, while Estonia garnered five yellow cards and also had a player dismissed. Despite this, Estonia managed to control the game with 53% possession while Moldova held onto 47% of the ball.
As the teams look ahead, Moldova will need to regroup from this defeat, facing significant challenges if they are to turn their fortunes around in upcoming matches. Meanwhile, Estonia aims to build on this success to continue progressing in the qualifiers.
