Zoltan Farmati
Romanian footballer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Zoltan Farmati (Hungarian: Farmati Zoltán; 9 July 1924 – 3 January 2006) was a Romanian association football defender.[4] Between 1947 and 1953 he played 21 matches for the national team, including one at the 1952 Summer Olympics.[1][5] Domestically he spent the majority of his career with UTA Arad, winning with them three national titles and two cups.[2][3][6]
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| |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 9 July 1924 | ||
| Place of birth | Șimleu Silvaniei, Romania[1] | ||
| Date of death | 3 January 2006 (aged 81) | ||
| Place of death | Ghioroc, Romania | ||
| Height | 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)[1] | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1943–1945 | Ferar Cluj[a] | 26 | (0) |
| 1946–1959 | UTA Arad[b] | 193 | (10) |
| Total | 219 | (10) | |
| International career | |||
| 1947–1953 | Romania | 21 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Club career
Farmati, nicknamed Bimbo, was born on 9 July 1924 in Șimleu Silvaniei, Romania, and was the eldest of eight brothers.[2][3][6] He began playing football in 1942 at CA Cluj in the Hungarian league, a competition in which he made two appearances.[2][3][6] In 1946, the club was renamed Ferar and started to play in the Romanian league where he made his debut on 25 August 1946 under coach Iuliu Bodola in a 1–0 away loss to Ciocanul București.[2][3][6][7] After one season, Farmati joined UTA Arad, helping them win The Double in his first season, being used by coach Petre Steinbach in 26 matches in which he scored a personal record of nine goals.[2][8] He also played in the 3–2 victory in the 1948 Cupa României final against CFR Timișoara.[2][9] In the 1950 Divizia A season, Farmati won another title with the club, being used by coach Francisc Dvorzsák in 23 matches in which he did not score.[2][8] In the same season he appeared in the 1950 Cupa României final which was lost with 3–1 to CCA București.[2][10] Farmati helped The Old Lady win the 1953 Cupa României, being used the entire match by coach Coloman Braun-Bogdan in the 1–0 victory against CCA București in the final.[2][11] Braun-Bogdan also gave him 23 appearances in the 1954 Divizia A season when he won his third title with the club.[2][8] On 19 November 1958, Farmati played his last Divizia A match in UTA's 3–1 home victory against Petrolul Ploiești, totaling 217 games with 10 goals in the competition.[2]
International career
Farmati played 21 games for Romania, making his debut under coach Colea Vâlcov in a 3–1 home loss to Yugoslavia in the 1947 Balkan Cup.[12][13] His following game was a 3–2 win over Bulgaria in the same competition.[12] Subsequently, he made five appearances in the 1948 Balkan Cup.[12] He was selected by coach Gheorghe Popescu to play in the 1952 Summer Olympics, appearing in the 2–1 loss in the first round against eventual champions Hungary.[12][14] Farmati's last two matches played for the national team were an away loss to Czechoslovakia and a home win against Bulgaria in the 1954 World Cup qualifiers.[12]
Later life and death
Farmati worked at UTA's center for children and juniors and also served as an assistant several times for the team's senior squad.[6]
He died on 3 January 2006 at age 81.[2][3][6]
A book about Farmati was written by Radu Romănescu and Ionel Costin titled Zoltan Farmati – Cavalerul de la brațul Bătrânei Doamne (Zoltan Farmati – The Knight from the Old Lady's Arm), which was released in 2017.[6][15]