Valentin Stănescu (20 November 1922 – 4 April 1994) was a Romanian football goalkeeper and manager.

Valentin Stănescu
Personal information
Date of birth (1922-11-20)20 November 1922
Place of birth București, Romania
Date of death 4 April 1994(1994-04-04) (aged 71)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
1933–1941 Olimpia București
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1941–1942 Malaxa Tohan
1942–1946 Sportul Studențesc București[a] 10 (0)
1946–1947 Carmen București 12 (0)
1947–1952 Locomotiva București[b] 39 (0)
Total 61 (0)
International career
1947 Romania 5 (0)
Managerial career
1953–1955 Locomotiva MCF București
1955–1958 Dunărea Giurgiu
1958–1959 Unirea Focșani
1959–1963 Metalul Târgoviște
1963–1968 Rapid București
1964 Romania Olympic
1968–1971 Steagul Roșu Brașov
1971 Romania Olympic
1971–1972 Steaua București
1973–1975 Romania
1976–1978 Petrolul Ploiești
1979–1980 Universitatea Craiova
1980–1981 Romania
1980–1982 Dinamo București
1982–1984 Rapid București
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

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Valentin Stănescu also known as "Tinel" or "Zimbrul" (The bison) was born on 20 November 1922 in Bucharest and started playing junior level football at age 11 in 1933 at local club Olimpia.[1][3][4][5][6][7][8] In 1942 he went to play for Malaxa Tohan for a short while, afterwards moving at Sportul Studențesc București for three years, a period in which he played a Cupa României final which was lost with 4–0 in front of CFR Turnu Severin.[1][3][6][8][9] He made his Divizia A debut playing for Carmen București under coach Petre Steinbach on 16 March 1947 in a 3–2 away victory against Dermagarand Târgu Mureș.[1][3][6][8][10] At the end of the season, the Carmen team was dissolved by the Communist regime that just took over the country, so he and teammate Bazil Marian wanted to flee to Italy, going on a ship from the Port of Constanța but were caught by the authorities who told them that they can choose from either going to jail or play for a working-class team such as Locomotiva București and both of them chose the latter.[11][12][13][14] He played for Locomotiva until he ended his career in 1952, his last season was spent in Divizia B as the club just relegated, but Stănescu stayed with the club, helping it promote back to the first division after one year.[1][3][6] Valentin Stănescu has a total of 51 matches played in Divizia A.[1]

International career

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Valentin Stănescu played 5 matches at international level for Romania, making his debut on 22 June 1947 when coach Colea Vâlcov introduced him in the 71st minute in order to replace Stanislau Konrad in a 3–1 loss against Yugoslavia at the 1947 Balkan Cup in which he did not concede any goals.[3][15][16] His following game, a 3–2 victory against Bulgaria was also at the 1947 Balkan Cup, a competition in which he also made his last appearance for the national team on 12 October 1947 in a 3–0 loss against Hungary.[15]

Managerial career

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Valentin Stănescu started his managerial career in 1953 at Locomotiva MCF București in the Romanian regional championship.[3][4][5][6] In 1955 he went to coach at Dunărea Giurgiu, after three years moving at Unirea Focșani in Divizia B, helping it avoid relegation.[3][4][5][6][8] In 1959 he started to coach Metalul Târgoviște, helping it promote from Divizia C to Divizia B and later to Divizia A where in his first season as coach in the first division, the team finished on the 13th place, relegating.[1][3][4][5][6][8] In 1963 he went to coach Giulești based club, Rapid București where he created a team based on the clubs juniors with some transfers including his former player from Dunărea Giurgiu, Constantin Năsturescu and goalkeeper Răducanu Necula and was the first coach that implemented the 4–4–2 formation in Romanian football, thus creating a team that helped him be the first Romanian manager who wins two Balkans Cup and helped the club win the first title in its history in the 1966–67 season.[1][3][4][5][6][7][8][17] In the following season he led Rapid in the 1967–68 European Cup, making his first European performance by eliminating Trakia Plovdiv with 3–2 on aggregate, being eliminated in the following round by Juventus Torino with 1–0 on aggregate, also he reached the 1968 Cupa României Final which was lost with 3–1 in extra time in front of Dinamo București that was coached by his former Carmen București teammate, Bazil Marian.[3][4][11][12][13][14][18][19][20] He also coached Romania's Olympic team for a short while in 1964 on 17 June in a 2–1 away victory in a friendly against Yugoslavia.[21][22][23] In 1968 he went to coach Divizia B team, Steagul Roșu Brașov, helping it win promotion to the first league after one year.[1][3][4][5][6][8] In 1971 he led for a second spell Romania's Olympic team at the 1972 Summer Olympics qualifiers helping it pass Albania with 4–2 on aggregate in the first round, helping it qualify in the second round where he lost with 2–1 in the away first leg against Denmark, being replaced before the second leg.[21][22][23][24] In 1971 he went to coach Steaua București, guiding it in the 1971–72 European Cup Winners' Cup campaign, being the first Romanian coach that eliminated Barcelona with 3–1 on aggregate, being eliminated after 1–1 on aggregate on the away goal rule by Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.[1][3][4][5][7][8][25][26] He became the coach of Romania's national team in 1973, making his debut in a friendly which ended with a 2–0 away loss against Soviet Union, during his two-year spell managing to earn Romania's biggest ever victory, a 9–0 against Finland at the 1974 World Cup qualifiers.[3][4][5][6][7][21][27] Stănescu took charge of Divizia B club Petrolul Ploiești in 1976 helping it promote after one year to the first league.[1][3][4][5][6][8] In 1979 he went to coach Universitatea Craiova, a team he helped win the 1979–80 Divizia A, also he became the first Romanian coach that eliminated a team from England, Leeds United with 4–0 on aggregate in the second round of the 1979–80 UEFA Cup, also earning a 1–0 victory against Borussia Mönchengladbach in the following round.[1][3][4][5][6][7][8][17] In 1980 Stănescu went for a second spell at Romania's national team, earning a 2–1 home victory and a 0–0 away draw against England at the 1982 World Cup qualifiers, having a total of 35 games from his both spells at the national team consisting of 11 victories, 14 draws and 10 losses.[3][4][5][6][7][8][21] From 1980 until 1982 he coached Dinamo București of which the first year and a half he simultaneously coached Romania, helping The Red Dogs win The Double in his second season spent at the club and managed to become the first Romanian coach that eliminated Inter Milan with 4–3 on aggregate in the second round of the 1981–82 UEFA Cup.[1][3][4][5][6][7][8][17][28] In 1982 he returned at Rapid București, helping it get back to Divizia A after the club spent six years in Divizia B.[1][3][4][5][6][7][8] Valentin Stănescu was the first coach that won the Romanian top-division, Divizia A with three different teams, having a total of 455 matches as a manager in the competition, consisting of 206 victories, 101 draws and 148 losses.[1][3][4][5][6][7][8][17][29] Stănescu died on 4 April 1994 at age 71.[1][4][8]

Famous speech

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From all the clubs he worked for, Valentin Stănescu admitted he was mostly attached to Rapid București, holding in his spell from the 80s the following speech in front of the players which remained popular in the club over the years: "Hey guys, do you hear? Let me tell you how things are. Rapid is not yours, it is not mine or the ministry's. Rapid belongs to over 100,000 railway workers from all over the country. It belongs to them, to their wives and children, to those who were, hundreds of thousands more, and who are no longer here and of those who will be after us! They are people who have worked and are working so that you can kick a ball, learn a book, become people. Do not disgrace Rapid! Whoever doesn't love the team does not have a choice, he'll have to love it like his mother and father. Here are your mother and father, house and table and sister and brother and lover and everything, everything you want and have holy in the world! From now on I'm your grandfather, but don't think that if I'm 60 years old, I have an easier hand. Who wants can leave now, because those who stay only leave the ship with their feet first!".[3][4][5]

Legacy

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The Giulești-Valentin Stănescu Stadium was a football stadium in the Giulești neighborhood of Bucharest. The venue, named after him, was the home stadium of FC Rapid București for almost 80 years.[3]

Honours

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Player

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Sportul Studențesc București

CFR București

Manager

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Metalul Târgoviște

Rapid București

Steagul Roșu Brașov

Petrolul Ploiești

Universitatea Craiova

Dinamo București

Notes

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  1. ^ The Divizia A 1940–41 was the last season before World War II and the Divizia A 1946–47 was the first one after, so the appearances and goals scored during this period for Sportul Studențesc București are not official with the exception of the 1945–46 regional championship.[1][2]
  2. ^ The statistics for the 1952 Divizia B season are unavailable.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Valentin Stănescu at RomanianSoccer.ro (in Romanian)
  2. ^ "File de poveste – perioada Juventus! Episodul XXIV – "Ultimul șut aduce promovarea"" [Story files - the Juventus period! Episode XXIV - "The Last Shot Gets the Promotion"] (in Romanian). Ploiestiulpatrianoastra.com. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae "Povestea lui Valentin Stănescu, legenda care dă numele stadionului din Giulești" [The story of Valentin Stănescu, the legend that gives the name of the stadium in Giulești]. www.gsp.ro (in Romanian). 8 November 2010. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z "100 de ani de la nașterea lui Valentin Stănescu, antrenorul care a eliminat Barcelona cu Steaua, Interul cu Dinamo, Leeds cu Craiova, dar care a iubit cu adevărat doar Rapidul" [100 years since the birth of Valentin Stănescu, the coach who eliminated Barcelona with Steaua, Inter with Dinamo, Leeds with Craiova, but who really loved only Rapidul]. www.gsp.ro (in Romanian). 20 November 2022. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Mesajul de luptă din vestiarul Rapidului. Discursul pe care jucătorii lui Mutu îl văd înaintea fiecărui meci: "Cine nu iubește echipa n-are încotro, va trebui să o iubească la fel ca pe mă-sa și ca pe ta-su!"" [The battle message from the Rapid locker room. The speech that Mutu's players see before every match: "Whoever doesn't love the team has no choice, he'll have to love it like his own mother and father!"]. www.gsp.ro (in Romanian). 27 July 2022. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Valentin Stănescu, antrenorul de suflet al fotbaliștilor" [Valentin Stănescu, the soul trainer of footballers]. Evenimentul Zilei (in Romanian). 28 March 2015. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Povestrea lui Valentin Stănescu, antrenorul care le-a eliminat pe Barcelona, Inter sau Leeds" [The story of Valentin Stănescu, the coach who eliminated Barcelona, Inter or Leeds]. www.eurosport.ro (in Romanian). 20 November 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o "Nea Tinel și definiția dragostei" [Nea Tinel and the definition of love] (in Romanian). Wesport.ro. 16 March 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  9. ^ a b "Romanian Cup – Season 1942–1943". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 11 April 2023.
  10. ^ "CS Tg Mures vs FC Carmen Bucuresti – Liga1 1946–1947". Labtof.ro. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  11. ^ a b "Enervat de arbitru, a "tras" o… țuică fiartă la marginea terenului! I se spunea "Bombardierul din Giulești"…" [Annoyed by the referee, he "pulled" a... boiled brandy on the edge of the field! He was called "The Bomber from Giulești"...] (in Romanian). Fanatik.ro. 19 February 2021. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  12. ^ a b "Centenarul "Bombardierului" Bazil Marian" [The centenary of the "Bombardier" Bazil Marian] (in Romanian). Wesport.ro. 8 November 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  13. ^ a b "Din istoria sportului românesc – Povestea lui Bazil Marian, "Bombardierul din Giulești"" [From the history of Romanian sport – The story of Bazil Marian, "The Bombardier from Giulești"] (in Romanian). Independentaromana.ro. 9 January 2020. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  14. ^ a b ""Bombardierul" Bazil Marian, omul-spectacol: A băut țuică în timpul unui meci și s-a așezat cu fundul pe minge, după ce driblase portarul!" ["Bombardier" Bazil Marian, the showman: He drank brandy during a match and sat with his bottom on the ball, after the goalkeeper had dribbled!]. Adevărul (in Romanian). 27 September 2016. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  15. ^ a b "Valentin Stănescu player profile". European Football. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  16. ^ "Romania 1-3 Yugoslavia". European Football. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g "Romania National Champions". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  18. ^ a b "Romanian Cup – Season 1967–1968". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  19. ^ "Cupa Campionilor Europeni, 1967/68: Juventus 1-0 Rapid București" [European Champions Cup, 1967/68: Juventus 1-0 Rapid Bucharest] (in Romanian). Tikitaka.ro. 3 July 2019. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  20. ^ "Povestea unei fabuloase finale de Cupă" [The story of a fabulous cup final] (in Romanian). Welovesport.ro. 16 June 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
  21. ^ a b c d "Valentin Stănescu manager profile". European Football. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  22. ^ a b "33 de partide au fost scoase din palmaresul reprezentativei de fotbal a României" [33 games were removed from the record of Romania's football team] (in Romanian). Telegrafonline.ro. 17 January 2007. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  23. ^ a b "33 de meciuri dispar din palmaresul României" [33 matches disappear from Romania's record]. www.tribuna.ro (in Romanian). 17 January 2007. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  24. ^ "Games of the XVIII. Olympiad Football Qualifying Tournament". The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  25. ^ "În 1972, Steaua a fost la un pas să o elimine pe Bayern" [In 1972, Steaua was one step away from eliminating Bayern] (in Romanian). Prosport.ro. 16 September 2008. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  26. ^ "Cupa Cupelor, sezonul 1971/72, sferturi: Steaua 1-1 Bayern, 8 martie 1972" [Cup Winners' Cup, season 1971/72, quarter-finals: Steaua 1-1 Bayern, 8 March 1972]. Tikitaka.ro. 25 March 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  27. ^ "Sandu și ceilalți "eroi" din 1973, despre culisele victoriei istorice cu 9-0 cu Finlanda" [Sandu and the other "heroes" from 1973, about the backstage of the historic 9–0 victory over Finland] (in Romanian). Digisport.ro. 8 October 2015. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  28. ^ a b "Romanian Cup – Season 1981–1982". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
  29. ^ "Top 60 antrenori" [Top 60 coaches] (in Romanian). RomanianSoccer.ro. Retrieved 26 December 2022.
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