Two number 10s will dominate the thinking of rival coaches Emeric Jenei and Dino Zoff before Saturday night's Euro 2000 quarter-final in Brussels between Romania and Italy.

Gheorghe Hagi and Alessandro del Piero are both fans' favourites but what role they will have in the King Baudouin Stadium could have a great bearing on who makes the semi-final.

He can claim to have been one of the greatest players in Europe for more than a decade but Hagi was missing as Romanian football enjoyed one of its greatest nights.

Suspension meant he missed the memorable match in Charleroi when Romania's players beat England to prolong their stay in Belgium.

Now he is ready to return to the side and ensure that he is part of what would be an even greater occasion.

At 35 Hagi has already retired once from international football and when Romania end their campaign, he will hang up his magical size five boots again.

He has already enjoyed glory this season, helping Galatasaray to win the UEFA Cup, but nothing would give him more pleasure than to help his country reach the semi-finals.

The Italians will certainly be aware of his threat but as Kevin Keegan can confirm, rumours that Romania is a one-man band are wide of the mark.

The M-team of Moldovan, Mutu and Munteanu caused all sorts of problems for England and Valencia's Adrian Ilie showed that he has the talent to star on the biggest stage.

They should have beaten Germany but were held to 1-1 while they were disappointing against Portugal, albeit hanging on until the 94th minute before being beaten.

Who Jenei leaves out for Hagi will be a key decision but it is almost inconceivable that the number 10 won't play. He has been the heart and soul of Romanian football for so long and his team-mates spoke of winning for Gheorghe before they played England.

Romania clinched their last eight spot with only minutes remaining but it was all a lot simpler for Italy. They went into their last game against Sweden knowing they were not only through, they had topped the group.

Dino Zoff took the opportunity to play his fringe players and that included 90 minutes for del Piero. The Italians rode their luck before the Juventus striker stuck home a memorable winner from the edge of the box in the closing minutes.

In the two previous matches his role had been reduced to that of second half sub but the reaction he got as he took the field against Turkey and Belgium showed that he remains the darling of the Azzurri's army of fans.

Against Turkey he smashed a free-kick against the underside of the bar and in the second game he used the open spaces to good effect as the Belgians were forced to chase the match.

Now Zoff must decide whether to start with del Piero or stick with the attacking talents of Filippo Inzaghi, Francesco Totti and Stefano Fiore, all of whom have found the net in Euro 2000.

While he contemplates his options in attack, Zoff can at least be relieved that captain Paolo Maldini will be fit to lead from the back after coming off against Sweden on Monday night.

He has high hopes that he will at last add an international triumph to his long list of success at club level.

Whatever happens on Saturday night, it is a safe bet the two number 10s will have a big impact on whether he still has that goal in his sights on the final whistle.