Condition worsens

Heart attack! Concerns for Romania’s former coach Lucescu

Mircea Lucescu(Bild: EPA/TOLGA BOZOGLU)

Just one day after stepping down as Romania’s national soccer team coach, Mircea Lucescu’s health has rapidly deteriorated! According to Romanian media reports citing a statement from the University Hospital in Bucharest, the 80-year-old suffered a heart attack prior to his scheduled discharge on Good Friday. The patient is in the cardiology ward and is receiving appropriate medical care there.

“His condition is stable; he is conscious and cooperating with the medical staff,” the newspaper “Adevarul” quoted the hospital’s director, Catalin Cirstoiu, as saying.

Hospitalized at the University Hospital in Bucharest since Sunday 
Lucescu has been hospitalized at the University Hospital since last Sunday after collapsing during a training session. He was diagnosed with severe cardiac arrhythmia at the hospital. According to the newspaper “Libertatea,” he had a pacemaker implanted last Tuesday.

Second term as national team coach ends
Just last Thursday, the Romanian Football Federation (FRF) announced that Lucescu was stepping down as national team coach. However, his contract had expired on March 31 anyway.

With his resignation, Lucescu ended his second term as national team coach. He had previously coached the Romanian national team from 1981 to 1986, leading them to the European Championship in 1984. This was followed by stints as coach at Inter Milan, Galatasaray Istanbul, Shakhtar Donetsk, Besiktas Istanbul, Zenit St. Petersburg, and Dynamo Kyiv. In the summer of 2024, he had once again taken over the national team.