Gheorghe Barbu (footballer)
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 20 July 1968[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Moreni, Romania[1] | ||
| Date of death | 31 October 2021 (aged 53)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Dej, Romania[1] | ||
| Position | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1988–1989 | Universitatea Craiova | 5 | (0) |
| 1990–1991 | Electroputere Craiova | 31 | (13) |
| 1991–1992 | Universitatea Craiova | 30 | (1) |
| 1993–1997 | Farul Constanța | 140 | (22) |
| 1997 | Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț | 11 | (0) |
| 1998–1999 | Național București | 38 | (3) |
| 1999–2000 | Farul Constanța | 13 | (2) |
| 2000–2001 | Universitatea Cluj | 14 | (2) |
| Total | 282 | (43) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2006–2010 | Mureșul Deva | ||
| 2011–2012 | Universitatea II Cluj | ||
| 2012 | FCM Reșița | ||
| 2013 | Universitatea Cluj (assistant) | ||
| 2013 | Universitatea Cluj (caretaker) | ||
| 2015–2016 | Unirea Jucu | ||
| 2016 | Unirea Dej | ||
| 2017 | Unirea Dej | ||
| 2017–2018 | CFR II Cluj | ||
| 2018 | Dacia Unirea Brăila | ||
| 2018–2019 | Unirea Dej | ||
| 2019–2020 | Someșul Dej | ||
| 2021 | Victoria Cluj | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Gheorghe Barbu (20 July 1968 – 31 October 2021) was a Romanian footballer who played as a forward and midfielder.[1][2] After he ended his playing career he worked as a manager, mainly at teams from the Romanian lower leagues, with a short spell in the first league at Universitatea Cluj.
Barbu was born on 20 July 1968 in Moreni, Romania.[1] He began playing senior-level football at Universitatea Craiova, making his Divizia A debut on 5 March 1989 under coach Sorin Cârțu in a 2–0 away loss to Victoria București.[1][3] Subsequently, he joined Divizia B side Electroputere Craiova, scoring 13 goals in the 1990–91 season to help them gain first league promotion.[1] Then he made a comeback to "U" Craiova and played in both legs of the 3–2 aggregate loss to Apollon Limassol in the 1991–92 European Cup first round.[1][4] Barbu also played in a 1–0 loss to Sigma Olomouc in the 1992–93 UEFA Cup first round.[1][5] In the middle of the 1992–93 season, Barbu went to play for Farul Constanța, but Universitatea still managed to win the Cupa României.[1][6] There, he made five appearances in the 1995 Intertoto Cup, scoring once in a win over Dnepr Mogilev, as the club reached the round of 16 where they were defeated by Heerenveen.[7] In the 1995–96 season, Barbu netted a personal record of eight goals in the first league.[1] He moved to Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț in 1997.[1] However, he spent only half a year there, going to Național București.[1] Barbu played six matches in the 1998 Intertoto Cup campaign, as they got past Hapoel Haifa and Iraklis, being eliminated by Bologna.[8] In 1999, he made a comeback to Farul Constanța, making his last Divizia A appearance on 10 May 2000 in a 2–1 away loss to FC Onești, totaling 237 matches with 28 goals in the competition.[1] During the 2000–01 Divizia C season, Barbu played for Universitatea Cluj under coach Ioan Sabău, helping them gain promotion to the second league and retiring afterwards.[9][10]
Managerial career
Barbu began coaching in 2006 at Mureșul Deva where he spent four years, helping the team gain promotion to the second league in 2007.[11] Subsequently, between 2011 and 2012, he worked for Universitatea II Cluj and FCM Reșița.[12][13] In 2013 he worked as Ionel Ganea's assistant for first league team Universitatea Cluj, while also serving as a caretaker coach for a short time after Ganea's departure.[12][14] From 2015 to 2021, Barbu coached several teams in the Romanian lower leagues such as Unirea Jucu, Unirea Dej, CFR II Cluj, Dacia Unirea Brăila, Someșul Dej and Victoria Cluj.[15][16]