April 8 – Romanian great Mircea Lucescu has passed away at the age of 80 after health complications.
On Tuesday, Lucescu’s death was confirmed by the Bucharest University Emergency Hospital, where he was admitted after reportedly suffering a heart attack on Friday morning.
“Mr Mircea Lucescu was one of the most successful Romanian football coaches and players, the first to qualify the Romanian national team for a European Championship, in 1984,” the hospital said in a statement. “Entire generations of Romanians grew up with his image in their hearts, as a national symbol.”
Lucescu was the manager of the Romania national team but he stood down following Romania’s failure to reach the 2026 World Cup and falling ill during practice. They suffered a 1-0 defeat against Turkey in the playoffs.
He managed for decades at the club level, leading among others Inter Milan, Galatasaray, Besiktas, Shakhtar Donetsk and Zenit Saint Petersburg. He spent 12 years at Donetsk where he nurtured a nucleus of Brazilian players and won the UEFA Cup.
“Mircea Lucescu made a decisive contribution to the rise of Romanian football, inspired generations of players and was a true ambassador for Romania in the world’s biggest stadiums,” said the country’s president Nicusor Dan.
As a player, Lucescu captained Romania at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico. He featured 66 times for the national team. Lucescu enjoyed a first spell as manager of Romania in the 80s, leading his side to Euro 1984.
In a recent interview with The Guardian, he reflected: “When I built the national team more than 40 years ago I wanted the young players to be hungry to play for Romania. I gave them chances at the senior level. I want players who are strongly motivated and who can control their emotions. I wanted to build self‑belief in their minds – that leads to performance. The 80s and the 90s were full of success. Even though the boys left Romania after the fall of communism to play abroad they always remembered the connection between themselves and the national team.”
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