Ionuț Lupescu
Lupescu in 2018
Personal information
Full name Ioan Angelo Lupescu
Date of birth (1968-12-09) 9 December 1968 (age 55)
Place of birth Bucharest, Romania
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
1975–1977 Admira Wacker
1977–1982 Mecanică Fină București
1982–1986 Dinamo București
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1986–1990 Dinamo București 98 (11)
1990–1996 Bayer Leverkusen 184 (4)
1996–1998 Borussia Mönchengladbach 44 (7)
1998–2000 Dinamo București 61 (14)
2000 Bursaspor 9 (2)
2000–2002 Dinamo București 24 (0)
2001–2002 → Al-Hilal (loan) 5 (1)
Total 424 (39)
International career
1988–2000[1] Romania 74 (6)
Managerial career
2004 FCM Bacău
2004 FC Brașov
2023– CS Dinamo (Academy Manager)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ioan "Ionuț" Angelo Lupescu (born 9 December 1968) is a Romanian former football player who played as a midfielder and a manager.

Club career

Ioan Lupescu, nicknamed Kaiserul was born on 9 December 1968 in Bucharest, Romania and started to play football in 1975 at the youth of Austrian club, Admira Wacker, the club where his father, Nicolae played until his retirement.[2][3][4][5] When his family returned to Romania, he went to play for Rapid București, being rejected after a trial, but after his family moved from Grivița to the Pantelimon neighborhood he went to play at the junior center of Mecanică Fină București where his father was coaching the seniors, but after a while at the pressure of his mother who wanted to see him play for a bigger team he went at Dinamo București's youth center where he worked with Iosif Varga.[2][3][4][5][6] On 21 September 1986 at age 17, he made his Divizia A debut under coach Mircea Lucescu in a 4–1 home victory against SC Bacău, also Lucescu gave him the captain armband at age 19.[2][4][5][6] The highlights of his period spent with The Red Dogs were the quarter-finals reached in the 1988–89 European Cup Winners' Cup where they were eliminated on the away goals rule after 1–1 on aggregate by Sampdoria and in the following season the club won the title and the cup with Lupescu playing 29 Divizia A matches with four goals scored, also appearing in 6 matches in which he scored one goal in the 1989–90 European Cup Winners' Cup as Dinamo reached the semi-finals where they were eliminated after 2–0 on aggregate by Anderlecht.[2][6][5][7][8][9][10] After the 1989 Romanian Revolution, Lupescu had offers to play in Italy from Bologna and Mircea Lucescu's team, Pisa, but he chose to make his own path in football, going to play in Germany for Bayer Leverkusen where he made his Bundesliga debut on 11 August 1990 when he was sent by coach Jürgen Gelsdorf in the 68th minute in order to replace Marcus Feinbier in a 1–1 against Bayern Munich, but the biggest performances achieved during his 6 seasons spent at the club were under coach Dragoslav Stepanović which consisted of the triumph in the 1992–93 DFB-Pokal and the reaching of the 1994–95 UEFA Cup semi-finals where they were eliminated by the eventual winners of the competition, Parma, with Lupescu making 10 appearances in the campaign.[2][3][4][5][7][8][11][12][13][14] In 1996 he went to play for two seasons at fellow Bundesliga team, Borussia Mönchengladbach, afterwards returning in Romania at Dinamo where in the 1999–00 season he helped the club win The Double, being used by coach Cornel Dinu in 29 Divizia A matches in which he scored six goals, including one in a 3–2 victory from a derby against Steaua București which helped them mathematically win the title.[2][5][7][8][15][16] In 2000, Lupescu went to play in Turkey at Bursaspor only for a half of season in which he was also the team's captain, after which he paid his termination clause of 225.000$ in order to come back at Dinamo, helping the team win at the end of the season the 2000–01 Cupa României.[2][3][5][7][8] He started the 2001–02 season at Dinamo, but in October 2001, he signed a contract with Saudi Arabia club Al-Hilal, working with Portuguese coach Artur Jorge, but could not adapt, because of the high climate, leaving the club in January 2002, however at the end of the season, both clubs won the title.[2][5][7][8][17] Ioan Lupescu has a total of 227 matches and 10 goals scored in Bundesliga, 183 matches and 25 goals scored in Divizia A, 9 games with two goals scored in Süper Lig, 5 appearances and one goal scored in Saudi Premier League and 46 games played with 3 goals scored in European competitions (including 2 appearances and one goal in the Intertoto Cup).[2][7][18]

International career

Ioan Lupescu made 74 appearances for Romania and scored six goals, making his debut on 3 February 1988 when coach Emerich Jenei sent him on the field in the 81st minute in order to replace Ioan Sabău in a friendly which ended with a 2–0 victory against Israel.[19][20] He played one match at the successful 1990 World Cup qualifiers, being used by Jenei in three matches from the final tournament, including in the game from the eight-finals where the team got eliminated by Ireland.[19] Afterwards he played 8 games and scored one goal at the Euro 1992 qualifiers, made 9 appearances and scored 3 goals at the successful 1994 World Cup qualifiers, being part of the "Golden Generation" that passed the group stage, eliminated with a 3–2 victory Argentina in the eight-finals, being eliminated after the penalty shoot-out by Sweden in the quarter-finals of the final tournament, being used by coach Anghel Iordănescu as a starter in all five games.[19][21] Lupescu played 9 games at the successful Euro 1996 qualifiers, being used at the final tournament by Iordănescu in all the minutes of the 1–0 loss in front of France, as a starter, but replaced at half-time by Constantin Gâlcă in the 1–0 loss against Bulgaria and introduced in the 86th minute in order to replace Daniel Prodan in the 2–1 loss against Spain, as Romania did not pass the group stage.[19][22][23][24] He played two games at the successful 1998 World Cup qualifiers, however he was not part of the squad that went to play at the final tournament and went on to play 9 games at the successful Euro 2000 qualifiers, being used by Jenei at the final tournament in the group game which ended 1–1 against Germany when he replaced Viorel Moldovan in the 85th minute and in the quarter-final against Italy which ended with a 2–0 loss when he replaced Constantin Gâlcă in the 68th minute.[19][25][26] Ioan Lupescu's last game played for the national team took part on 7 October 2000 in a 3–0 away loss against Italy at the 2002 World Cup qualifiers.[19]

On 25 March 2008 Lupescu was decorated by President of Romania Traian Băsescu for contributing as general manager of the Romanian Football Federation at the national team's successful Euro 2008 qualifying campaign with the Medalia "Meritul Sportiv" – (The Medal "The Sportive Merit") class III.[27][28]

International goals

Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Lupescu goal.[19]
List of international goals scored by Ioan Lupescu
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 29 August 1990 Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow, USSR  Soviet Union 2–0 2–1 Friendly
2 5 December 1990 Stadionul Național, București, Romania  San Marino 4–0 6–0 Euro 1992 qualifiers
3 6 May 1992 Stadionul Ghencea, București, Romania  Faroe Islands 5–0 7–0 1994 World Cup qualifiers
4 20 May 1992 Stadionul Ghencea, București, Romania  Wales 2–0 5–1 1994 World Cup qualifiers
5 3–0
6 18 August 1999 Tsirion Stadium, Limassol, Cyprus  Cyprus 1–1 2–2 Friendly

Coaching career

In 2003, Lupescu acquired his coaching license at the German Sport University of Cologne.[29] He started to work as a manager in the second part of the 2003–04 Divizia A season, helping FCM Bacău avoid relegation.[30] In the following season he worked at FC Brașov in Divizia A but left the club after refusing to participate at a fixed match against Gloria Bistrița, insisting in front of the club's leader, Romeo Pașcu to play the game fairly, promising that he will leave the club if he loses, Pașcu accepted the deal, but the game was lost with 3–1, so Lupescu resigned, shortly afterwards being named general manager at the Romanian Football Federation by president Mircea Sandu, years later working as a technical director at UEFA and became a member of FIFA's Technical and Development Committee.[30][31][32][33]

Personal life

Lupescu is the son of former Romanian international player Nicolae Lupescu, who for a time also served as a manager.[3][34][35]

In 2010 he appeared in the "Be free" video of Smiley's band Radio Killer alongside Senegalese international footballer, Ousmane N'Doye and former tennis ATP number 1, Ilie Năstase.[36]

Honours

Dinamo București

Bayer Leverkusen

Al-Hilal

References

  1. ^ Stokkermans, Karel (10 June 2011). "Ioan Angelo "Ionut" Lupescu – International Appearances". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Ioan Lupescu at RomanianSoccer.ro (in Romanian)
  3. ^ a b c d e "Ionuţ Lupescu e fan al Generaţiei Mexico '70, iar tatăl său, Culae, e convins că tinerii din '94 le-au luat faţa: "Ei au fost mai buni decît noi!"" [Ionuţ Lupescu is a fan of the Mexico '70 Generation, and his father, Culae, is convinced that the youth of '94 took their face: "They were better than us!"] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 6 December 2010. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d "Viata mea in fotbal. Ionut Lupescu, despre perfomanta din SUA: "Primeam dupa doua zile cate o caseta de la ambasada cu ceea ce se dadea la televizor in Romania si abia atunci realizam ce-am facut"" [My life in football. Ionut Lupescu, about the performance in the USA: "After two days, we would receive a tape from the embassy with what was shown on television in Romania and only then did we realize what we had done"] (in Romanian). Mediafax.ro. 25 March 2021. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h "Ionuţ Lupescu la 50 de ani. Kaiserul, românul de la UEFA" [Ionuț Lupescu at 50 years old. The Kaiser, the Romanian from UEFA] (in Romanian). Fanatik.ro. 9 December 2018. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  6. ^ a b c "Cum au fost create marile echipe ale anilor '80?. Episodul 3: Dinamo - Show cu doar 14 "câini". Dar de rasă" [How were the great teams of the '80s created? Episode 3: Dinamo - Show with only 14 "dogs". But dogs of race] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 25 March 2021. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Ionuț Lupescu, la borna 53. "Jumătate din viață am stat în străinătate, dar mă simt român" + Amintiri de la zilele de naștere precedente" [Ionuț Lupescu, at terminal 53. "I spent half my life abroad, but I feel Romanian" + Memories from previous birthdays] (in Romanian). Prosport.ro. 9 December 2021. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  8. ^ a b c d e "Ionuț Lupescu nu se mai întoarce în România! Decizia e definitivă!" [Ionuț Lupescu is not returning to Romania! The decision is final!] (in Romanian). Redactia.ro. 19 December 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  9. ^ "Dinamo, reunire cu gandul la Sampdoria" [Dinamo, reunited with the fought at Sampdoria] (in Romanian). Jurnalul.ro. 9 January 2009. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  10. ^ "Ioan Lupescu - Cup Winners Cup 1989/1990". WorldFootball. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  11. ^ "Trei decenii de la Marele Exod" [Three decades since the Great Exodus] (in Romanian). Wesport.ro. 7 September 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  12. ^ "SAISON 1992/1993" [1992/1993 SEASON] (in German). Bayer04.de. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  13. ^ "SAISON 1994/1995" [1994/1995 SEASON] (in German). Bayer04.de. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  14. ^ "Bayern München vs. Bayer Leverkusen 1 – 1". WorldFootball. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  15. ^ "Dinamo a batut Steaua cu 3-2: super goluri Danciulescu si Mihalcea! VIDEO" [Dinamo beat Steaua 3-2: super goals Danciulescu and Mihalcea! VIDEO] (in Romanian). Sport.ro. 16 March 2010. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
  16. ^ "Romania National Champions". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  17. ^ "Lupescu rules out Dinamo return". Uefa.com. 19 January 2002. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  18. ^ Ioan Lupescu at WorldFootball.net
  19. ^ a b c d e f g "Ioan Lupescu profile". European Football. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  20. ^ "Israel 0-2 Romania". European Football. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  21. ^ ""Ei sunt jucătorii din Generația de Aur care nu driblau". Dezvăluirea făcută de Ilie Dumitrescu" ["They are the players of the Golden Generation who did not dribble." The disclosure made by Ilie Dumitrescu] (in Romanian). Digisport.ro. 23 November 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  22. ^ "France 1-0 Romania". European Football. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  23. ^ "Bulgaria 1-0 Romania". European Football. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  24. ^ "Romania 1-2 Spain". European Football. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  25. ^ "Germany 1-1 Romania". European Football. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  26. ^ "Italy 2-0 Romania". European Football. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  27. ^ "DECRET privind conferirea Ordinului și Medaliei Meritul Sportiv" (PDF). Monitorul Oficial al României Nr. 241. 28 March 2008. p. 3. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  28. ^ "Decorarea unor personalități ale fotbalului românesc". Administrația Prezidențială. 25 March 2008. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  29. ^ "Lizenz zum Trainieren" [License to train] (in German). Uni-protokolle.de. 22 May 2008. Archived from the original on 7 September 2007. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  30. ^ a b "Cum s-a terminat aventura de antrenor a lui Ionuț Lupescu:"N-a acceptat un pact cu Pădureanu"" [How Ionuț Lupescu's coaching adventure ended: "He did not accept a pact with Pădureanu"] (in Romanian). Libertatea.ro. 1 September 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  31. ^ "Blatul refuzat care i-a încheiat cariera de antrenor lui Ionuț Lupescu. Dezvăluiri incredibile: "Nu fac așa ceva!"" [The rejection of a match fixing that ended Ionuț Lupescu's coaching career. Incredible revelations: "I don't do that!"] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 1 September 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  32. ^ "FC BRAȘOV. Ionuț Lupescu a refuzat blatul pus la cale de Romeo Pașcu și Jean Pădureanu!!! Ce s-a întâmplat apoi?!..." [FC BRAŞOV. Ionuț Lupescu refused the counter set up by Romeo Pașcu and Jean Pădureanu!!! What happened then?!...] (in Romanian). Mytex.ro. 1 September 2019. Archived from the original on 29 September 2022. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  33. ^ "Un român a fost între cei 13 experți FIFA care l-au ales pe Lionel Messi cel mai bun jucător al Cupei Mondiale" [A Romanian was among the 13 FIFA experts who chose Lionel Messi as the best player of the World Cup] (in Romanian). Digisport.ro. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  34. ^ "A murit fostul internaţional Nicolae Lupescu, tatăl lui Ionuţ Lupescu" [The former international Nicolae Lupescu, the father of Ionut Lupescu died] (in Romanian). digisport.ro. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  35. ^ "SPECIAL Situaţie de gradul I în Liga 1. Ce a realizat Silviu Lung jr. prin câştigarea titlului cu Astra. De la fraţii Vâlcov, la fraţii Costea şi familia Piţurcă" [SPECIAL First grade situation in Liga 1. What Silviu Lung jr. accomplished by winning the title with Astra. From the brothers Vâlcov to the brothers Costea and the Piţurcă family] (in Romanian). prosport.ro. 9 May 2016. Retrieved 8 October 2017.
  36. ^ "Urmărește-i în acțiune pe N'Doye, Ilie Nastase, Lupescu şi Smiley în noul videoclip Radio Killer!" [Watch N'Doye, Ilie Nastase, Lupescu and Smiley in action in the new Radio Killer video!] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 9 June 2010. Retrieved 13 November 2023.

External links

Romania squads
Ioan Lupescu managerial positions
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