Gheorghe Hagi
Gheorghe Hagi
Gheorghe Hagi
Hagi in 2018
Personal information
Youth career
Senior career*
National team
Teams managed
2001 Romania
2003–2004 Bursaspor
2004–2005 Galatasaray
2010–2011 Galatasaray
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league
only
Gheorghe Hagi (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈɡe̯ orɡe ˈhad͡ ʒʲ] ( listen); born 5 February 1965) is a
Romanian football manager and former professional player, who played as an attacking
midfielder. He is currently the owner of Romanian club Viitorul Constanța. Hagi was
considered one of the best players in the world during the 1980s and '90s,[3] and is
regarded by many as the greatest Romanian footballer of all time.[4][5] Fans of Turkish
club Galatasaray, with whom Hagi ended his career, called him "Comandante" ("The
Commander"), while he was known as "Regele" ("The King") to Romanian supporters.
[6]
Nicknamed "The Maradona of the Carpathians", he was a creative
advanced playmaker renowned for his dribbling, technique, vision, passing and
shooting.[6][7][8]
After starting his playing career in Romania, with Farul Constanța, and subsequently
featuring for Sportul Studențesc and Steaua București, he later also had spells in Spain
with Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, Italy with Brescia, and Turkey, with Galatasaray;
as such, Hagi is one of the few footballers to have played for both Spanish rival clubs
Real Madrid and Barcelona. Throughout his club career, he won numerous titles while
playing in four different countries: he won three Romanian League titles, two Cupa
României titles, and the European Super Cup with Steaua București – also reaching the
final of the 1988–89 European Cup –, a Supercopa de España title with Real Madrid,
the Anglo-Italian Cup with Brescia, another Supercopa de España title with Barcelona,
and four Süper Lig titles, two Turkish Cups, two Turkish Super Cups, the UEFA Cup,
and the UEFA Super Cup with Galatasaray.
At international level, Hagi played for the Romanian national team in three FIFA World
Cups, in 1990, 1994 (where he was named in the World Cup All-Star Team after helping
his nation to the quarter-finals of the tournament) and 1998; as well as in three UEFA
European Championships, in 1984, 1996 and 2000. He won a total of 124 caps for
Romania between 1983 and 2000,[a] making him the second-most capped Romanian
player of all time, behind only Dorinel Munteanu; he is also the joint all-time leading
goalscorer of the Romanian national side (alongside Adrian Mutu) with 35 goals.
Hagi is considered a hero both in his homeland and in Turkey. He was
named Romanian Footballer of the Year a record seven times, and is regarded as one
of the best football players of his generation.[9][10] Hagi was nominated six times for
the Ballon d'Or, his best performance being a 4th place in 1994.[11][12][13][14][15][16][17] In November
2003, to celebrate UEFA's Jubilee, Hagi was selected as the Golden Player of Romania
by the Romanian Football Federation as their most outstanding player of the past 50
years.[18] In 2004, he was named by Pelé as one of the 125 Greatest Living
Footballers at a FIFA Awards Ceremony.[19] In 1999, he was ranked at number 25
in World Soccer Magazine's list of the 100 greatest players of the 20th century.[10]
Following his retirement in 2001, Hagi pursued a managerial career, coaching the
Romanian national team, as well as clubs in both Romania and Turkey,
namely Bursaspor, Galatasaray, Politehnica Timișoara, FCSB, and Viitorul Constanța.
In 2009, he founded Romanian club Viitorul Constanța, which he has coached between
2014 and 2020. Hagi also established the Gheorghe Hagi Football Academy, one of the
largest football academies in Southeastern Europe.[20]
Contents
1Club career
2International career
3Career as coach
o 3.1Romania national team
o 3.2Bursaspor
o 3.3Galatasaray
o 3.4Politehnica Timișoara
o 3.5FCSB
o 3.6Galatasaray return
o 3.7Viitorul Constanța
4Style of play
5Personal life
6Career statistics
o 6.1Club
o 6.2International
o 6.3International goals
o 6.4Managerial statistics
7Honours
o 7.1Player
o 7.2Manager
o 7.3Individual
8See also
9Notes
10References
11External links
Club career[edit]
Hagi started his career playing for the youth teams of Farul Constanța in the 1970s,
before being selected by the Romanian Football Federation to join the squad of
Luceafărul București in 1980, where he remained for two years. In 1982, he returned
to Constanța, but one year later, aged 18, he was prepared to make the step up to play
for a top team. He was originally directed to Universitatea Craiova, but chose Sportul
Studențesc of Bucharest instead.[21][22]
In late 1986, Hagi transferred to Steaua București as the team prepared for
the European Super Cup final against Dynamo Kyiv. The original contract was for a
one-game loan only, the final.[21] However, after winning the trophy, in which Hagi scored
the only goal of the match from a free kick,[23] Steaua did not want to release him back to
Sportul Studențesc and retained him. During his Steaua years (1987–1990), Hagi
played 97 Liga I games, scoring 76 goals, and netted 98 goals in total in 107
appearances for the club across all competitions.[21][22][8] With the club, he reached
the European Cup semi-final in 1988, and the final in the following year,[24] while Hagi
finished as one of the competition's top scorers in the former edition of the tournament.
[25]
Hagi also won three consecutive league and Cup doubles with Steaua between 1987
and 1989.[6][26] His strong performances had him linked with Arrigo Sacchi's Milan, fellow
Serie A club Juventus, and German side Bayern Munich, but Nicolae
Ceaușescu's communist government rejected any offer.[21]
After impressing at the 1990 FIFA World Cup, Hagi was signed by Spanish club Real
Madrid on 27 June that same year; the La Liga side paid $3.5 million to Steaua
București in order to acquire him.[6][27][28][29] Hagi played two seasons with Real Madrid,
which were largely unsuccessful, scoring 20 goals in 84 games, and only winning
the Supercopa de España; some of his most memorable performances for the club
included a hat-trick in a 5–0 home win over Athletic Bilbao at the Santiago Bernabéu
Stadium, on match-day 22 of the 1991–92 season, and a 40-yard lob
against Osasuna during the same campaign.[6][27][30][31] He was subsequently sold to Italian
side Brescia for 8 billion lira in 1992.[6][30][32]
Hagi began the 1992–93 season with Brescia in Serie A, but after his first season, the
club was relegated to Serie B.[6][30][32] The following season, Hagi helped the club win
the Anglo-Italian Cup, with Brescia defeating Notts County 1–0 in the final at Wembley,
and also helped the team finish third in Serie B and earn promotion back to Serie A.[30]
[32]
After performing memorably during the 1994 World Cup, Hagi returned to Spain, and
was signed by defending La Liga champions Barcelona for £2 million, where he
immediately won his second Supercopa de España title; however, he later struggled to
gain playing time at the club under manager Johan Cruyff.[6][30][33]
After two years at Barça, Hagi signed for Turkish club Galatasaray in 1996, at the age of
31.[6] He had been the subject of a competing transfer offer from São Paulo FC.
[34]
Although in the twilight of his career, at Galatasaray, he was extremely successful,
and became highly popular among the Turkish supporters, due to his excellent
performances for the club. Hagi was an important member of the Galatasaray team that
went on to win four consecutive league titles between 1996 and 2000. In 2000, at age
35, Hagi had one of the best seasons of his career, winning every possible major title
with Galatasaray that season.[6] Most significantly, Hagi captained the club to win
the 1999–2000 UEFA Cup after defeating Arsenal on penalties in the final, following a
0–0 draw; during the match, Hagi was sent off in extra-time for punching Arsenal
captain Tony Adams.[35][36] Consequently, Galatasaray became the first Turkish club to
win a UEFA club competition title.[35] The team's UEFA Cup triumph was immediately
followed by the UEFA Super Cup title, with a historic 2–1 win against Hagi's former club
Real Madrid in extra-time.[37] The mass hysteria caused by these wins in Istanbul raised
Hagi's popularity with the fans even further, and prompted former France
international Luis Fernández to say, "Hagi is like wine, the older it gets, the better it is."[6]
When he retired in 2001, Hagi was one of the most popular players in both Turkey and
Romania.[6] Hagi drew praise from the Galatasaray supporters for his performances
during his time with the club, who adopted the chant "I Love You Hagi" in his honour. [22]
International career[edit]
Hagi made his debut for the Romania national team in 1983, against Norway, in Oslo, at
the age of 18.[6] He scored his first international goal against Northern Ireland in 1984.
[8]
The following year, he was made captain for the first time, in a World Cup
qualifier against the same opponent.[21]
Although Romania failed to qualify for the 1986 World Cup,[8] Hagi later took part at the
1990 World Cup, where he helped the team reach the round of 16, before Republic of
Ireland ended their run, after winning the resulting penalty shoot-out following a 0–0
draw, with Hagi netting Romania's first spot kick.[38] Four years later, he led the
Romanian team to its best ever international performance at the 1994 World Cup, as
they reached the quarter-finals, only to lose to Sweden in a penalty shoot-out once
again.[6] Hagi scored three times in the tournament, including a memorable goal in their
3–2 surprise defeat of South American powerhouse and previous runners-up Argentina.
[39]
In the first of Romania's group stage matches, a 3–1 win against Colombia, Hagi
provided two assists and scored one of the most memorable goals of the tournament,
curling in a 40-yard lob over Colombian goalkeeper Óscar Córdoba who was caught out
of position; the goal was later voted the fifth greatest World Cup goal in a
FIFAworldcup.com poll.[6] Hagi was named in the Team of the Tournament for his
performances.[40]
Four years later, he captained Romania at the 1998 World Cup; Hagi initially
communicated that France '98 would be his final tournament. Romania topped their
group, which featured England, Colombia, and Tunisia, and reached the round of 16,
before being eliminated by Croatia.[6][8][41] After the tournament, Hagi retired from the
national team, only to change his mind after a few months and participate in UEFA Euro
2000, during which he was sent off in the 2–0 quarter-final loss against eventual
runners-up Italy; this was his final international appearance.[6][8][42][43]
Hagi retired from professional football in 2001, at the age of 36; that year, he was given
a send-off in a testimonial game on 24 April, called "Gala Hagi," featuring a team of
Romanian All-Stars against a team of international All-Stars.[44][45] At the time of his
retirement, his 124 caps[a] for his country were a national record, which has since been
surpassed by Dorinel Munteanu. He currently still holds the record of most goals scored
for the Romanian national team, alongside Adrian Mutu, with 35.[6][8][46]
Career as coach[edit]
Romania national team[edit]
In 2001, Hagi was named the manager of the Romania national team,
replacing Ladislau Bölöni, who left the squad to coach Sporting Clube de Portugal. After
failing to qualify the team for the World Cup, however, Hagi was sacked. His only
notable achievement during the six months as Romania's manager was the win
in Budapest against Hungary.
Bursaspor[edit]
In 2003, Hagi took over as coach of Turkish Süper Lig side Bursaspor, but left the club
after a disappointing start to the season.
Galatasaray[edit]
Hagi then became manager of Galatasaray in 2004, leading the team to the Turkish
Cup in 2005 final with 5–1 as a score against fierce rivals Fenerbahçe. His contract,
however, was not renewed since his team was not able to win 2004–05 Süper Lig title
over Fenerbahçe during the centennial of the club.
Politehnica Timișoara[edit]
Steaua București sought to hire Hagi in the summer of 2005, but Hagi's requested wage
could not be met by the Romanian champions, and he became manager of Politehnica
Timișoara instead. However, after a string of poor results and disagreements with
management, he left the club after a few months. Constanța's main stadium used to
bear his name, but the name was changed after Hagi signed with Politehnica Timișoara.
[47]
FCSB[edit]
From June to September 2007, Hagi coached FCSB, had a mediocre start in the
internal championship mainly due to the large number of unavailable injured players,
and managed to qualify the team for the second time in line to the UEFA Champions
League group stages, passing two qualifying rounds. He resigned due to a long series
of conflicts with club owner Gigi Becali, which also happens to be his godson. The main
reason for resigning was the owner's policy of imposing players, making the team's
strategy and threats. Hagi's resigned mere hours after FCSB's first Champions League
match away against Slavia Prague, a 2–1 loss.
Galatasaray return[edit]
After Frank Rijkaard was sacked as coach, Hagi signed a one and a half-year contract
with Galatasaray on 21 October 2010. His official presentation was held on 22 October.
[48]
His former teammate from Galatasaray Tugay Kerimoğlu assisted him in Istanbul, but
he was sacked on 22 March 2011 after a series of poor results in the Süper Lig.
Viitorul Constanța[edit]
In September 2014, Hagi appointed himself manager of Viitorul Constanța, in addition to
being the owner and chairman of the club. Successfully avoiding relegation in his first
season, Viitorul went on to be the season's wonder in the 2015–16 season, finishing the
first half of the regular season on 3rd place, which led Hagi to being named Romania
Coach of the Year. Eventually, Viitorul finished the regular season on 4th place, earning
their first play-off qualification. Viitorul finished the play-off on 5th place, but qualified for
the UEFA Europa League third qualifying round due to Dinamo București's insolvency.
In their first European match, Viitorul were defeated 0–5 by Gent at the Ghelamco
Arena, and were eliminated after a 0–0 home draw.
Viitorul won their maiden league title, being 2016–17 Liga I champions after a 1–0 home
victory over CFR Cluj; they finished the play-off with 44 points, same as FCSB, but on a
better head-to-head record after a 3–1 home victory over FCSB. As a result, Hagi won
his second Romania Coach of the Year award.
Style of play[edit]
A talented left-footed attacking midfielder, Hagi's playing style was
frequently compared with Diego Maradona's throughout his career, due to his technical
ability as well as his temperamental character and leadership;[8][31][49][50][51] as a youth, he
was mainly inspired by compatriots Anghel Iordănescu and Ion Dumitru.[8] A quick, highly
creative, and mobile advanced playmaker, Hagi was also tactically versatile, and
capable of playing in several midfield and offensive positions on either wing or through
the middle, due to his ability with both feet, despite being naturally left-footed, although
he had a preference for using his stronger foot; his preferred position was in a free role
as a classic number 10, but he was also used as a second striker on occasion.[3][6][49][52][53][54]
[55]
Hagi was renowned in particular for his first touch and speed on the ball, as well as
his timing, interpretation of space, bursts of acceleration, and dribbling skills, which
enabled him to get past defenders; he was also highly regarded for his vision and
precise passing,[3][6][49][56] although he was capable of both scoring and assisting goals, and
was also an accurate finisher and set-piece taker, who had a penchant for scoring goals
from powerful, bending long range strikes.[3][6][8][49][52][57] Despite his small stature and slender
build, Hagi possessed significant upper body strength, which, along with his control,
aided him in protecting the ball from opponents, and allowed him to create space for
himself or his teammates.[8][21][28][52] Despite his skill and his reputation as one of the
greatest number 10s of his generation, his career was marked by inconsistency at
times, and he was also considered to be a controversial player, due to his rebellious
and arrogant attitude, as well as his low work-rate, aggression, unsportsmanlike
behaviour, and lack of discipline, which led him to have several disagreements and
confrontations with his managers, opponents, and officials.[8][21][28][30][54][58][59][60]
Personal life[edit]
His son Ianis Hagi, who is also a footballer, was born in Istanbul, Turkey, in 1998, when
he was playing for Galatasaray SK.[61][62][63] Ianis currently plays for Scottish club Rangers.
His daughter, Kira Hagi (born 1996), has started an acting career.
Career statistics[edit]
Club[edit]
Sources:[64][65][66][67][68]
Seaso
Club
n
Divisio App Goal App Goal App Goal App Goal App Goal
n s s s s s s s s s s
1984–
30 20 2 0 – 32 20
85
1985– 31 31 2 3 – 33 34
86
1986–
16 5 4 1 – 20 6
87
1986–
14 10 1 1 – 15 11
87
1987–
31 25 8 4 – 39 29
88
Divizia
A
Steaua
1988–
București 30 31 9 6 – 39 37
89
1989–
22 10 3 1 – 25 11
90
Total 97 76 21 12 0 0 118 88
1990–
29 4 0 0 4 0 1[c] 0 34 4
91
La
Liga
Real
1991–
Madrid 35 12 5 1 10 3 – 50 16
92
Total 64 16 5 1 14 3 1 0 84 20
Brescia 1992–
Serie A 31 5 – – 31 5
93
1993– Serie B 30 9 – – 30 9
94
Total 61 14 — — 65 16
1994–
17 4 2 1 2 0 2[c] 0 23 5
95
La
Liga
Barcelona 1995–
19 3 4 0 5 3 – 28 6
96
Total 36 7 6 1 7 3 2 0 51 11
1996–
30 14 1 2 3 1 2[d] 0 36 17
97
1997–
30 8 6 0 6 0 0 0 42 8
98
1998– Süper
28 14 4 1 8 3 – 40 18
99 Lig
Galatasar
ay
1999–
19 12 3 1 15 4 – 37 17
2000
2000–
25 11 1 0 11 2 – 37 13
01
International[edit]
Sources:[2][69]
1983 5 0
1984 9 1
1985 10 4
1986 8 3
1987 8 2
1988 4 2
1989 8 0
1990 11 2
1991 6 2
1992 5 4
1993 5 1
1994 11 5
1995 3 1
1996 8 1
1997 6 4
1998 7 1
1999 4 2
2000 6 0
Total 124[a] 35
International goals[edit]
Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first
FIFA
12
Windsor Park, Belfast, Northern Northern World Cup
1 Septemb 1–1 2–3
Ireland Ireland 1986
er 1984
Qualifying
30
Estádio José
2 January Portugal 3–2 3–2 Friendly
Alvalade, Lisbon, Portugal
1985
FIFA
3 April Stadionul World Cup
3 Turkey 1–0 3–0
1985 Central, Craiova, Romania 1986
Qualifying
FIFA
6 June Helsinki Olympic World Cup
4 Finland 1–0 1–1
1985 Stadium, Helsinki, Finland 1986
Qualifying
20
7 August Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway Norway 2–0 2–2 Friendly
1986
10 UEFA Euro
Stadionul
8 Septemb Austria 4–0 4–1 1988
Ghencea, Bucharest, Romania
er 1986 Qualifying
11 March Karaiskakis
9 Greece 1–1 1–1 Friendly
1987 Stadium, Piraeus, Greece
UEFA Euro
1 25 March Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest,
Albania 3–1 5–1 1988
0 1987 Romania
Qualifying
20
1 Stadionul 1
Septemb Albania 2–0 3–0 Friendly
1 Mai, Constanța, Romania
er 1988
FIFA
2
1 Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest, World Cup
Novemb Greece 2–0 3–0
2 Romania 1990
er 1988
Qualifying
1 3 August Stadion
Switzerland 1–0 1–2 Friendly
3 1990 Allmend, Lucerne, Switzerland
16 UEFA Euro
1 Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest,
October Scotland 1–0 1–0 1992
6 Romania
1991 Qualifying
FIFA
1 6 May Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest, Faroe World Cup
2–0 7–0
7 1992 Romania Islands 1994
Qualifying
FIFA
1 20 May Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest, World Cup
Wales 1–0 5–1
8 1992 Romania 1994
Qualifying
FIFA
1 20 May Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest, World Cup
Wales 5–0 5–1
9 1992 Romania 1994
Qualifying
FIFA
29
2 Neo GSZ World Cup
Novemb Cyprus 3–1 4–1
0 Stadium, Larnaca, Cyprus 1994
er 1992
Qualifying
FIFA
17
2 Cardiff Arms World Cup
Novemb Wales 1–0 2–1
1 Park, Cardiff, Wales 1994
er 1993
Qualifying
World Cup
2 18 June Rose Bowl, Pasadena, United
Colombia 2–0 3–1 1994 Group
3 1994 States
A
Pontiac World Cup
2 22 June
Silverdome, Pontiac, United Switzerland 1–1 1–4 1994 Group
4 1994
States A
World Cup
2 3 July Rose Bowl, Pasadena, United 1994
Argentina 3–1 3–2
5 1994 States Round of
16
12 UEFA Euro
2 Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest,
Novemb Slovakia 2–0 3–2 1996
6 Romania
er 1994 Qualifying
15 UEFA Euro
2 Všešportový
October Slovakia 1–0 2–0 1996
7 areál, Košice, Slovakia
1995 Qualifying
9 World Cup
2 Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Icel
October Iceland 2–0 4–0 1998
8 and
1996 Qualifying
World Cup
2 29 March Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest, Liechtenste
4–0 8–0 1998
9 1997 Romania in
Qualifying
10 World Cup
3 Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest,
Septemb Iceland 1–0 4–0 1998
0 Romania
er 1997 Qualifying
10 World Cup
3 Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest,
Septemb Iceland 4–0 4–0 1998
1 Romania
er 1997 Qualifying
4 UEFA Euro
3 Tehelné
Septemb Slovakia 2–1 5–1 2000
4 pole, Bratislava, Slovakia
er 1999 Qualifying
8 UEFA Euro
3 Stadionul Ghencea, Bucharest,
Septemb Portugal 1–0 1–1 2000
5 Romania
er 1999 Qualifying
Managerial statistics[edit]
As of 22 November 2020
Record
Team From To
G W D L Win %
Politehnica
2005 2006 16 5 4 7 31.25
Timișoara
11
Viitorul Constanța 2014 2020 242 47 78 48.35
7
16
Total 356 79 113 46.07
4
Honours[edit]
Player[edit]
Steaua București[6]