Viorel Moldovan
{{short description|Romanian footballer and manager}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Viorel Moldovan
| fullname = Viorel Dinu Moldovan
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1972|07|08}}
| birth_place = Bistrița, Romania
| height = 1.77 m
| position = Striker
| currentclub = Rapid București (president)
| youthyears1 = 1984–1989 | youthclubs1 = Gloria Bistrița
| years1 = 1989–1993 | clubs1 = Gloria Bistrița | caps1 = 86 | goals1 = 15
| years2 = 1993–1995 | clubs2 = Dinamo București | caps2 = 60 | goals2 = 19
| years3 = 1995–1996 | clubs3 = Neuchâtel Xamax | caps3 = 32 | goals3 = 19
| years4 = 1996–1997 | clubs4 = Grasshoppers | caps4 = 51 | goals4 = 44
| years5 = 1998 | clubs5 = Coventry City | caps5 = 10 | goals5 = 1
| years6 = 1998–2000 | clubs6 = Fenerbahçe | caps6 = 53 | goals6 = 33
| years7 = 2000–2004 | clubs7 = Nantes | caps7 = 69 | goals7 = 31
| years8 = 2003 | clubs8 = → Al-Wahda (loan) | caps8 = 1 | goals8 = 0
| years9 = 2004 | clubs9 = Servette | caps9 = 13 | goals9 = 3
| years10 = 2005 | clubs10= Politehnica Timișoara | caps10 = 23 | goals10 = 8
| years11 = 2006–2007 | clubs11= Rapid București | caps11 = 41 | goals11 = 15
| totalcaps = 439 |totalgoals = 188
| nationalyears1 = 1991–1993{{Cite news|title=Viorel Dinu MOLDOVAN|publisher=RomanianSoccer|url=https://www.romaniansoccer.ro/players/1279/viorel-dinu-moldovan.htm}}| nationalteam1 = Romania U21 | nationalcaps1 = 16 | nationalgoals1 = 3
| nationalyears2 = 1993–2005{{Cite news|title=Dinu Viorel Moldovan – Goals in International Matches|publisher=Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation|url=https://www.rsssf.org/miscellaneous/moldovan-intlg.html}} | nationalteam2 = Romania | nationalcaps2 = 70 | nationalgoals2 = 25
| manageryears1 = 2007 | managerclubs1 = Rapid București (sporting director)
| manageryears2 = 2007–2008 | managerclubs2 = Unirea Urziceni (sporting director)
| manageryears3 = 2008–2009 | managerclubs3 = Vaslui
| manageryears4 = 2009–2010 | managerclubs4 = FC Brașov
| manageryears5 = 2010 | managerclubs5 = Sportul Studențesc
| manageryears6 = 2013–2014 | managerclubs6 = Rapid București
| manageryears7 = 2014 | managerclubs7 = Romania U21
| manageryears8 = 2014–2016 | managerclubs8 = Romania (assistant)
| manageryears9 = 2016 | managerclubs9 = Auxerre
| manageryears10 = 2018–2020 | managerclubs10 = Chindia Târgoviște
| manageryears11 = 2020–2021 | managerclubs11 = Petrolul Ploiești
|manageryears12 = 2024– |managerclubs12 = Rapid București (president)
}}
Viorel Dinu Moldovan (born 8 July 1972) is a Romanian football manager and former player, currently the president of Liga I club Rapid București.
A former striker, Moldovan most successful years of his career were playing for Neuchâtel Xamax and Grasshoppers between 1996 and 1998 in Switzerland (he was the Nationalliga A top scorer in 1996 and 1997), for Fenerbahçe between 1998 and 2000 and for Nantes between 2000 and 2004. He was a key player when Nantes won the French French Division 1 in 2001. He represented Romania in two editions of the World Cup, those held in the United States in 1994 and France in 1998, as well as two European Championships, in 1996 and 2000.
Club career
Moldovan was born in Bistrița.
At club level, Moldovan played for Gloria Bistrița (1990–93), Dinamo București (1993–95), Neuchâtel Xamax (1995–96), Grasshoppers (1996–97), Coventry City (1998), Fenerbahçe (1998–2000), Nantes (2000–04), Servette (2004), FCU Politehnica Timișoara (2005), and Rapid București (2006–2007).
The most successful years of his career were playing for Neuchâtel Xamax and Grasshoppers between 1996 and 1998 in Switzerland (he was the Swiss Super League top scorer in 1996 and 1997), for Fenerbahçe between 1998 and 2000 and for Nantes between 2000 and 2004. He was a key player when Nantes won the French French Division 1 in 2001. During his brief spell in England with Coventry City he scored twice, once in the FA Cup, scoring the winner against local rivals Aston Villa,{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-fa-cup--moldovan-the-destroyer-of-myths-1145090.html |title=Moldovan the destroyer of myths |work=The Independent |date=14 February 1998 |access-date=25 November 2009 | location=London | first=Phil | last=Shaw}} and once in the league against Crystal Palace, also having a goal disallowed in the same game {{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-coppell-deep-in-the-doldrums-1147745.html |title=Coppell deep in the doldrums |work=The Independent |date=28 February 1998 |access-date=25 November 2009 | location=London | first=Nick | last=Callow}}
International career
Coaching career
Moldovan worked as the sporting director of Unirea Urziceni and after that started his coaching career at FC Vaslui. On 26 May 2009, the coach quit FC Vaslui after just seven months for failing to guide the team to European qualification. The squad was then managed by coaching assistant Cristian Dulca on a temporary basis until a new coach was hired.[http://www.gsp.ro/index.php?section=articol&screen=index&id=139989&rss=1 Porumboiu: "Despărţirea de Viorel Moldovan s-a făcut pe cale amiabilă"] On 28 July 2009, the Italian coach Nicolò Napoli quit FC Brașov and was replaced by Moldovan, who signed a two-year deal.[http://www.cotidianul.ro/fc_brasov_napoli_inlocuit_de_viorel_moldovan_in_scaunul_de_antrenor-93430.html FC Braşov: Napoli înlocuit de Viorel Moldovan în scaunul de antrenor] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090730010322/http://www.cotidianul.ro/fc_brasov_napoli_inlocuit_de_viorel_moldovan_in_scaunul_de_antrenor-93430.html |date=30 July 2009 }}
Career statistics
=International stats=
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+ Appearances and goals by national team and year | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| rowspan="13"|Romania{{RomanianSoccer|1279/viorel-dinu-moldovan}}
|1993 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1994 | 3 | 0 | |
| 1995 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1996 | 9 | 4 | |
| 1997 | 7 | 5 | |
| 1998 | 13 | 8 | |
| 1999 | 10 | 2 | |
| 2000 | 11 | 2 | |
| 2001 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2002 | 4 | 2 | |
| 2003 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2004 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2005 | 2 | 0 | |
| colspan="2"|Total | 70 | 25 |
:Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Moldovan goal.
| class="wikitable sortable" | ||||||
| scope="col"|No.
!scope="col"|Date !scope="col"|Venue !scope="col"|Opponent !scope="col"|Score !scope="col"|Result !scope="col"|Competition | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| style="text-align:center"|1 | rowspan=3|24 April 1996 | rowspan=3|Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania | rowspan=3|{{fb|GEO}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|5–0 | rowspan=3|Friendly |
| style="text-align:center"|2 | style="text-align:center"|2–0 | style="text-align:center"|5–0 | ||||
| style="text-align:center"|3 | style="text-align:center"|3–0 | style="text-align:center"|5–0 | ||||
| style="text-align:center"|4 | 31 August 1996 | Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania | {{fb|LTU}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|3–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| style="text-align:center"|5 | 29 March 1997 | Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania | {{fb|LIE}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|8–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| style="text-align:center"|6 | 2 April 1997 | Žalgiris Stadium, Vilnius, Lithuania | {{fb|LTU}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| style="text-align:center"|7 | rowspan=2|20 August 1997 | rowspan=2|Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania | rowspan=2|{{fb|MKD}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|4–2 | rowspan=2|1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| style="text-align:center"|8 | style="text-align:center"|3–1 | style="text-align:center"|4–2 | ||||
| style="text-align:center"|9 | 6 September 1997 | Sportplatz, Eschen, Liechtenstein | {{fb|LIE}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|8–1 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| style="text-align:center"|10 | 8 April 1998 | Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania | {{fb|GRE}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|2–1 | Friendly |
| style="text-align:center"|11 | 22 April 1998 | King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium | {{fb|BEL}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|1–1 | Friendly |
| style="text-align:center"|12 | 6 June 1998 | Stadionul Ilie Oană, Ploiești, Romania | {{fb|MDA}} | style="text-align:center"|4–0 | style="text-align:center"|5–1 | Friendly |
| style="text-align:center"|13 | 22 June 1998 | Stadium Municipal, Toulouse, France | {{fb|ENG}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|2–1 | World Cup 1998 Group G |
| style="text-align:center"|14 | 26 June 1998 | Stade de France, Saint Denis, France | {{fb|TUN}} | style="text-align:center"|1–1 | style="text-align:center"|1–1 | World Cup 1998 Group G |
| style="text-align:center"|15 | 2 September 1998 | Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania | {{fb|LIE}} | style="text-align:center"|6–0 | style="text-align:center"|7–0 | UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying |
| style="text-align:center"|16 | 5 September 1998 | Ta' Qali Stadium, Attard, Malta | {{fb|GER}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|1–1 | Friendly |
| style="text-align:center"|17 | 14 October 1998 | Népstadion, Budapest, Hungary | {{fb|HUN}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|1–1 | UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying |
| style="text-align:center"|18 | rowspan=2|4 September 1999 | rowspan=2|Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia | rowspan=2|{{fb|SVK}} | style="text-align:center"|4–1 | style="text-align:center"|5–1 | rowspan=2|UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying |
| style="text-align:center"|19 | style="text-align:center"|5–1 | style="text-align:center"|5–1 | ||||
| style="text-align:center"|20 | 27 May 2000 | Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands | {{fb|NED}} | style="text-align:center"|1–2 | style="text-align:center"|1–2 | Friendly |
| style="text-align:center"|21 | 12 June 2000 | Stade de Sclessin, Liège, Belgium | {{fb|GER}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|1–1 | UEFA Euro 2000 |
| style="text-align:center"|22 | 6 June 2001 | S. Darius and S. Girėnas Stadium, Kaunas, Lithuania | {{fb|LTU}} | style="text-align:center"|2–0 | style="text-align:center"|2–1 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| style="text-align:center"|23 | 15 August 2001 | Bežigrad Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia | {{fb|SLO}} | style="text-align:center"|2–1 | style="text-align:center"|2–2 | Friendly |
| style="text-align:center"|24 | rowspan=2|16 October 2002 | rowspan=2|Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg, Luxembourg | rowspan=2|{{fb|LUX}} | style="text-align:center"|1–0 | style="text-align:center"|7–0 | rowspan=2|UEFA Euro 2004 qualifying |
| style="text-align:center"|25 | style="text-align:center"|2–0 | style="text-align:center"|7–0 |
Honours
=Player=
Gloria Bistrița
Grasshoppers
Nantes
Rapid București
- Cupa României: 2005–06, 2006–07
- Supercupa României runner-up: 2006
Individual
- Nationalliga A top scorer: 1995–96 (joint with Petar Aleksandrov), 1996–97
- Swiss Foreign Footballer of the Year: 1995–96, 1996–97
=Coach=
References
{{reflist}}
{{Navboxes
|title=Romania squads
|bg=#FFE60D
|fg=#0045E6
|bordercolor=#CE1126
|list1=
{{Romania Squad 1994 World Cup}}
{{Romania Squad 1996 Euro Cup}}
{{Romania Squad 1998 World Cup}}
{{Romania Squad 2000 Euro Cup}}
}}
{{Navboxes
|title=Awards
|bg=gold
|fg=navy
|list1=
{{Swiss Super League top scorers}}
{{Swiss Footballer of the Year}}
}}
{{Navboxes
|title= Viorel Moldovan managerial positions
|list1=
{{AFC Chindia Târgoviște managers}}
{{AJ Auxerre managers}}
{{FC Petrolul Ploiești managers}}
{{FC Rapid București managers}}
{{FC Sportul Studențesc București managers}}
{{FC Vaslui managers}}
{{FC Braşov managers}}
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moldovan, Viorel}}
Category:Footballers from Bistrița
Category:Romanian men's footballers
Category:Men's association football forwards
Category:ACF Gloria Bistrița players
Category:FC Dinamo București players
Category:Neuchâtel Xamax FCS players
Category:Grasshopper Club Zurich players
Category:Coventry City F.C. players
Category:Fenerbahçe S.K. footballers
Category:FC Politehnica Timișoara players
Category:FC Rapid București players
Category:Swiss Super League players
Category:Premier League players
Category:UAE Pro League players
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Switzerland
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in England
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in France
Category:Expatriate men's footballers in the United Arab Emirates
Category:Romanian expatriate men's footballers
Category:Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland
Category:Romanian expatriate sportspeople in England
Category:Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey
Category:Romanian expatriate sportspeople in France
Category:Romanian expatriate sportspeople in the United Arab Emirates
Category:Romania men's international footballers
Category:1994 FIFA World Cup players
Category:1998 FIFA World Cup players
Category:UEFA Euro 1996 players
Category:UEFA Euro 2000 players
Category:Romanian football managers
Category:Romanian expatriate football managers
Category:FC Brașov (1936) managers
Category:FC Sportul Studențesc București managers
Category:FC Rapid București managers
Category:AFC Chindia Târgoviște managers
Category:FC Petrolul Ploiești managers
Category:Expatriate football managers in France
Category:Romanian sports executives and administrators