Traian Ionescu

Romanian footballer and manager

Trăian Ionescu
Silvio Piola (left) with Ionescu at Coverciano in 1965
Personal information
Full name Trăian Ionescu
Date of birth (1923-07-17)17 July 1923
Place of birth Văleni, Argeș County, Romania
Date of death 4 October 2006(2006-10-04) (aged 83)
Place of death București, Romania
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
1936–1939 TC Târgoviște
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1939–1941 Sporting Club Pitești
1943–1945 Vulturii Textila Lugoj
1945–1946 Sportul Muncitoresc Găvana
1946–1949 Juventus București 42 (0)
1949–1951 CCA București 36 (0)
1952 CA Câmpulung Moldovenesc 11 (0)
Total 89 (0)
International career
1948–1949 Romania 5 (0)
Managerial career
1952 Casa Armatei Craiova
1952–1957 Flacăra Ploiești (youth)
1959–1962 Dinamo București
1963–1964 Dinamo București
1965–1967 Dinamo București
1969–1970 Fenerbahçe
1971 Dinamo București
1971–1972 Dinamo București (technical director)
1973–1975 Sportul Studențesc București
1975–1976 Olimpia Satu Mare
1977–1978 Jiul Petroșani
1978–1980 SC Bacău
1980–1981 Petrolul Ploiești
1981 Steaua București
1982 Chimia Râmnicu Vâlcea
1983–1984 Morocco Olympic team
1984–1985 Olt Scornicești
1987–1989 CSM Reșița
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Traian Ionescu (17 July 1923 – 4 October 2006) was a Romanian football goalkeeper and coach.

Club career

Traian Ionescu was born on 17 July 1923 in Văleni, Argeș County, Romania and started to play junior level football at age 13 at TC Târgoviște where he stayed until 1939.[1][2][3] Afterwards he went to play for Sporting Club Pitești, Vulturii Textila Lugoj and Sportul Muncitoresc Găvana before arriving at Juventus București where he made his Divizia A debut on 6 April 1947, being used by coach Emerich Vogl in a 4–1 victory against Libertatea Oradea.[1][2][3][4] In 1949 he was transferred by CCA București where he helped the team win the first title in its history in the 1951 Divizia A season, being used by coach Gheorghe Popescu I in 5 games, he also helped the team win three Cupa României but played in only one final in 1949 when coach Francisc Ronnay used him in the 2–1 victory against CSU Cluj.[1][2][3][5][6][7] Ionescu went to play for CA Câmpulung Moldovenesc where he made his last Divizia A appearance on 27 November 1952 in a 3–0 home victory against Flacăra Petroșani, having a total of 98 games played in the competition.[1][2][3]

International career

Traian Ionescu played five games at international level for Romania, making his debut on 20 June 1948 under coach Iuliu Baratky in a 3–2 home victory against Bulgaria at the 1948 Balkan Cup.[8][9] His following two games were also at the 1948 Balkan Cup, a 2–1 victory against Czechoslovakia and a 0–0 against Poland.[8] Ionescu's last appearance for the national team took place on 22 May 1949 in a friendly which ended with a 3–2 loss against Czechoslovakia.[8]

Managerial career

"Traian Ionescu was unique, one of the greatest Romanian football coaches."

–Cornel Dinu, former Dinamo player[3]

Traian Ionescu started his coaching career at Divizia C team, Casa Armatei Craiovei which shortly after his appointment had dissolved so he went working as a youth coach at Flacăra Ploiești where he discovered talents like Mircea Dridea, Vasile Sfetcu and Constantin Tabarcea, reaching the 1957 national junior championship final which was lost in front of Universitatea Cluj.[2][3][10][11] He went to coach the senior squad of Dinamo București where he showed his availability of discovering and promoting young players like Ion Pârcălab whom after transferring him from UTA Arad turned into one of the best forwards in Europe, Mircea Lucescu whom he saw playing football on a field covered with gravel, Cornel Dinu whom he noticed while playing for Metalul Târgoviște in the quarter-finals of the 1964–65 Cupa României against Dinamo, 16 year-old Florea Dumitrache whom he saw only 10 minutes playing junior level football at TUG București after which he decided to transfer him, Constantin Frățilă, Ilie Datcu, Gabriel Sandu, Florin Cheran and Alexandru Sătmăreanu, all of them together with other players he coached at Dinamo like Ion Nunweiller, Lică Nunweiller and Gheorghe Ene were important players for Romania's national team in the 1960s and 1970s.[2][3][12][13][14] In his spells with The Red Dogs, Ionescu helped the team win four Divizia A titles and one Cupa României after a 5–3 victory in the final against rivals Steaua București.[2][3][7][15] He had his first coaching experience outside Romania in Turkey at Fenerbahçe with whom he won the Turkish First Football League 1969–70 and a TSYD Cup together with his former Dinamo players, Ion Nunweiller and Ilie Datcu.[2][3][16] Traian Ionescu also worked at Sportul Studențesc București, Olimpia Satu Mare, Jiul Petroșani with whom he reached the 1977–78 Balkans Cup final, SC Bacău, Petrolul Ploiești, Steaua București, Chimia Râmnicu Vâlcea, Olt Scornicești, CSM Reșița, having a total of 287 matches as manager in Divizia A, consisting of 128 victories, 70 draws and 89 losses, also having a second coaching experience outside Romania at Morocco's Olympic team.[2][3][17][18] Ionescu died on 4 October 2006 at age 83 in București.[3][6]

Honours

Player

CCA București

Manager

Dinamo București

Fenerbahçe

Jiul Petroșani

References

  1. ^ a b c d Traian Ionescu at RomanianSoccer.ro (in Romanian)
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i "100 de ani de la nașterea antrenorului care a lansat cele mai mari legende dinamoviste, care a scris istorie în Ștefan cel Mare, dar care în sufletul lui era stelist" [100 years since the birth of the coach who launched the greatest Dynamo legends, who wrote history in Ștefan cel Mare, but who in his soul was a Steaua fan] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 17 July 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "I-a "inventat" pe Dinu, Lucescu şi Dumitrache" [He "invented" Dinu, Lucescu and Dumitrache] (in Romanian). Adevarul.ro. 18 September 2011. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  4. ^ "File de poveste – perioada Juventus! Episodul XXV –"La 17 minute de locul doi"" [Story files - the Juventus period! Episode XXV – "17 minutes from second place"] (in Romanian). Ploiestiulpatrianoastra.ro. 12 July 2014. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Romanian Cup – Season 1948–1949". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d e f "Traian Ionescu, condus pe ultimul drum" [Traian Ionescu, led on the last road] (in Romanian). Adevarul.ro. 7 October 2006. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d "Romania National Champions". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  8. ^ a b c "Traian Ionescu". European Football. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  9. ^ "Romania 3-2 Bulgaria". European Football. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  10. ^ "Va redeveni, cândva, clubul găzarilor pepiniera care a fost pe vremea lui Traian Ionescu? – numai despre ce se întâmplă la FC Petrolul, echipa de suflet a ploieștenilor și a prahovenilor (episodul 52)" [Will, someday, the Gazaril club become the nursery that it was at the time of Traian Ionescu? – only about what happens at FC Petrolul, the soul team of Ploiești and Prahoven people (episode 52)] (in Romanian). Gazetaph.ro. 24 December 2019. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  11. ^ "Portretul unui campion al Petrolul Ploiești: George Marin" [Portrait of a champion of Petrolul Ploiesti: George Marin] (in Romanian). Adevarul.ro. 25 February 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  12. ^ "INTERVIU-EVENIMENT cu Cornel Dinu la 70 de ani: "M-au drogat ca să nu ajung în Ghencea! Tata a ales Dinamo, nu Steaua"" [INTERVIEW-EVENT with Cornel Dinu at the age of 70: "They drugged me so that I wouldn't end up in Ghencea! My father chose Dinamo, not Steaua"] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 2 August 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  13. ^ ""Mopsul" Dumitrache dribla orice adversar. Nu și alcoolul. Ar fi împlinit 70 de ani…" ["The pug" Dumitrache dribbled past any opponent. But not alcohol. He would have turned 70…] (in Romanian). Fanatik.ro. 23 May 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  14. ^ "Legendele fotbalului: "Mopsul" s-a irosit în alcool" [Football legends: "Pug" wasted himself in alcohol] (in Romanian). Adevarul.ro. 4 November 2011. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  15. ^ a b "Romanian Cup – Season 1967–1968". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  16. ^ "Ilie Datcu, primul bașkan român în fotbal" [Ilie Datcu, the first Romanian baskan in football] (in Romanian). Sptfm.ro. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  17. ^ a b "O partidă care nu s-a mai jucat. Aproape de un meci Jiul – Galatasaray!" [A game that has never been played before. Close to a match Jiul - Galatasaray!] (in Romanian). Cronicavj.ro. 11 May 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2023.
  18. ^ "Top 60 antrenori" [Top 60 coaches] (in Romanian). RomanianSoccer.ro. Retrieved 8 January 2023.

External links

  • Traian Ionescu at WorldFootball.net
  • Traian Ionescu at National-Football-Teams.com
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Süper Lig winning managers
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CSM Jiul Petroșani – managers
(c) = caretaker manager
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CSM Reșița – managers
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FC Dinamo București – managers
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FC Petrolul Ploiești – managers
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FC Sportul Studențesc București – managers
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FCSB – managers
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FCM Bacău – managers
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Fenerbahçe S.K. – managers
(c) = caretaker manager