Angelo Niculescu

Angelo Niculescu, 1970

Angelo Niculescu ( born October 1, 1921 in Craiova ) is a former Romanian football player and coach. He led the Romanian national football team for FIFA World Cup 1970 in Mexico.

• 2.1 as coach

Career

Niculescu as an active player

Niculescu began playing football at Rovine Griviţa in his home town of Craiova. However, due to its good performance, he moved after two years to local rivals FC Craiova. Further stations of his football career were Carmen Bucharest, Bucharest Ciocanul and at the end of his career, the famous capital of representatives Dinamo Bucharest. He never stood out as key players and came then only temporarily to inserts. Already at the age of 29 ended his active career Niculescu as a footballer.

The career as a coach and official

From 1953 to 1957 worked as a coach Niculescu of Dinamo Bucharest, where he won the championship in 1955. It was followed less successful intermediate stations at archrival CCA Bucharest, which was taken from him by the Dinamo supporters particularly evil, and in the season 1958/59 in second division Tractorul Brasov in the second round in 1957/58. After subsequent five -year break, he returned to his old love Dinamo Bucharest and spent two more seasons, winning titles when he won the double of league and cup victory in 1965.

In 1967, Niculescu was appointed as the successor of Ilie Oană to the coach of the Romanian national football team. First of all, behind eventual champions Italy qualification missed the European Championships in 1968. The highlight of his coaching career was the surprising skill of Romania for the Football World Cup 1970, where his team but after narrow defeats against England and Brazil and a win against Czechoslovakia after the Preliminary Round eliminated. At the end of 1972, he resigned as national coach. Previously, Romania was eliminated in the quarter- finals of the European Football Championship in 1972 against Hungary only in the decider.

In the fall of 1973, Niculescu coach Sportul Studenţesc, which he led in the top group of Divizia A and with which he was qualified for the UEFA Cup in 1976/77. There, the team in the first round was able to beat Olympiakos Piraeus, then retired but from two defeats against FC Schalke 04. In 1977 he moved to league rivals Politehnica Timişoara, where he again managed to qualify for the UEFA Cup in season 1977/78. There, he suffered again from the in the second round.

At the beginning of the 1979/80 season Niculescu took over again as coach at Dinamo Bucharest, the season closed but from only in fifth place. He subsequently worked at SC Bacău and Universitatea Cluj ( descent at the end of the season 1981/82 ) and in Divizia B at Oţelul Galaţi he ended his coaching career in 1983.

Later Niculescu was made an honorary member of the Romanian Football Federation and was at times vice-president of the technical committee headed by Mircea Sandu. Since the death of his wife in 2008 Niculescu lives alone and withdrawn in a small apartment.

Achievements

As coach

• World Cup participants: 1970
• Romanian champion: 1955, 1965
• Romanian Cup Winners: 1965
• Qualify for the UEFA Cup: 1976, 1978

Others

Niculescu lives alone in an apartment of the Romanian capital Bucharest.