Ionel Ganea

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Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox football biography

Ioan Viorel "Ionel" Ganea (born 10 August 1973) is a Romanian professional football coach and former player who played as a striker.

Club career

Early career

Ionel Ganea was born on 10 August 1973 in Făgăraș, Romania, starting to play senior level football in 1992 at Divizia B side, ICIM Brașov.[1][2] Two years later, coach Ioan Nagy brought him to FC Brașov, giving him his Divizia A debut on 20 August 1994 in a 3–1 away loss in front of Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț.[1][2] In the middle of the 1995–96 season he was transferred to Universitatea Craiova with whom he reached the 1998 Cupa României final, being used by coach José Ramón Alexanko in all the minutes of the 1–0 loss in front of Rapid București.[1][3] He started the 1997–98 season by scoring 17 goals in just 16 appearances for Gloria Bistrița, transferring in the middle of it to Rapid where he scored 11 more, helping them win the title and also being the top-goalscorer of the season.[1][4][5][6]

VfB Stuttgart

Ganea was transferred in the summer of 1999 to VfB Stuttgart who paid 1.75 million€ to Rapid.[1][7][8] He made his Bundesliga debut on 14 August when coach Ralf Rangnick used him as a starter in a 0–0 with Werder Bremen.[9] He scored his first two goals for the club on 18 September in a 4–2 home win over MSV Duisburg, managing another brace on 14 December in a 3–1 win with Hansa Rostock.[1][10] The team started the following season by winning the 2000 Intertoto Cup, a campaign in which he made two appearances, the team playing afterwards in the UEFA Cup, Ganea scoring a brace in a 3–1 victory with Tirol Innsbruck, then closing the score in a 2–2 with Feyenoord, helping his side reach the eight-finals of the competition where the campaign ended in front of Celta Vigo.[1][11][12][13] Also in the same season, Ganea scored a hat-trick and provided three assists for Adhemar's hat-trick in a 6–1 over Kaiserslautern in the league.[14][15] Early in the 2001–02 season, Ganea scored both of his side's goals in a 2–2 with Nürnberg, totalizing 10 goals at the end of the season, a personal Bundesliga record for him.[1][16] He started his last season at Stuttgart by helping the side win another Intertoto Cup, scoring a goal in each of the legs from the third round with Perugia, also playing in both legs of the 2–1 victory on aggregate from the final with Lille.[1][11][17] He scored a brace in a win with 1860 Munich and a hat-trick in another victory against VfL Bochum, contributing with a total of nine goals as the team finished on the second place in Bundesliga.[1][18]

With 136 games played in which he scored 47 goals and provided 15 assists in all competitions for Stuttgart, Ganea was known during this period for his ability of scoring after coming in the game as a substitute.[1][19][20][21] Ganea claimed that his toughest opponents during his years spent in Germany were Lothar Matthäus and Jürgen Kohler, also he cherished a shirt he received from Oliver Kahn.[19]

Bursaspor

In the summer of 2003, being free of contract he signed with Turkish top flight club Bursaspor which was coached by fellow Romanian Gheorghe Hagi, being teammate with compatriots Bogdan Vintilă, Iulian Miu and Cornel Frăsineanu.[1][22] He scored his first goal on 27 September in a 2–1 win over Konyaspor, a game in which he also received a red card.[23] He also scored a hat-trick on 2 November in a 6–0 over Adanaspor and three weeks later he scored his last goal for Bursa in a 1–1 with Akçaabat Sebatspor.[1][23][24]

Wolverhampton Wanderers

The striker joined Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers in December 2003 after his contract in Turkey was cancelled by mutual consent.[1][25] In 14 Premier League appearances he scored three goals during the 2003–04 season – against eventual champions Arsenal, Leeds and Newcastle – but could not prevent relegation.[26]

He remained with the club for two seasons in the second tier, mostly under the managership of Glenn Hoddle.[1][27] The first of these years was written off after suffering cruciate knee ligament injury on a pre-season tour of Norway.[27] He recovered for the 2005–06 season but never held down a regular starting place, and was released as his contract expired at the end of the campaign.[1][27]

Return to Romania

In June 2006 he moved back to Romania, signing with Dinamo București on an initial one-year deal, claiming one of the reasons he choose Dinamo is that he was a good friend with its coach, Mircea Rednic.[1][28] Ganea had to compete to earn a place in the team's offence with Ionel Dănciulescu and Claudiu Niculescu, scoring his first goal on 20 August in a 3–1 home victory with Politehnica Timișoara, one week later managing to score all the goals in a 4–0 over Universitatea Craiova.[1][29][30][31][32] He scored a total of 14 goals in the first half of the season, also providing an assist for Niculescu's decisive goal in the 2–1 victory against Bayer Leverkusen from the 2006–07 UEFA Cup group stage which helped The Red Dogs reach the sixteenths-finals.[1][29][33] However, in December, after just six months, Ganea broke his contract with Dinamo who managed to win the league without him.[1][4][34]

He rejoined Rapid București on a record 350.000€ salary per year.[1][34] He scored his first goal for Rapid on 1 April 2007 in a loss in front of rivals Steaua București, then another one in a victory with Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț, having a total of 16 goals scored in the season, being the league's second top-goalscorer with two goals behind former teammate Claudiu Niculescu.[5][35] The team also won the Cupa României but coach Răzvan Lucescu did not use him in the 2–1 win over Politehnica Timișoara from the final.[36][37]

In June 2007, Ganea signed for Politehnica Timișoara where on 7 May 2008 he made his last Liga I appearance in a 4–1 home win over Farul Constanța in which he scored once, having a total of 183 matches with 73 goals scored in the competition, also playing a total of 33 games with seven goals scored in European competitions, including 13 games with three goals in the Intertoto Cup.[1][21][38][39]

He returned briefly on the pitch as a professional player only for one game on 22 September 2011 in a Cupa României match against Steaua București which ended with a 4–0 loss.[40][41]

International career

Ionel Ganea played 45 games and scored 19 goals for Romania, making his debut under coach Victor Pițurcă on 3 March 1999 against Estonia, scoring both goals in a 2–0 win.[42][43] He played five games at the successful Euro 2000 qualifiers in which he scored once in a 4–0 over Azerbaijan and a brace in a 3–0 with Liechtenstein.[42] He was used by coach Emerich Jenei in three games at the Euro 2000 final tournament, in all of them being sent on the field as a substitute, in the one with England he scored in the last minutes of the game from a penalty the decisive goal of the 3–2 victory which helped Romania pass the group stage and reach the quarter-finals where he entered the field in the 54th minute to replace Viorel Moldovan in the eventual 2–0 loss in front of Italy.[44][45][46] In July 2024, British tabloid newspaper, The Sun listed Ganea's penalty goal in England's top 18 disappointments suffered after the winning of the 1966 World Cup.[47]

He played seven games and netted once in a 1–0 over Lithuania at the 2002 World Cup qualifiers, afterwards making eight appearances at the Euro 2004 qualifiers where he scored a goal in both victories with Bosnia and Herzegovina, once in a 1–1 with Norway and his last goal for The Tricolours in a 4–0 victory over Luxembourg.[42][48] Ganea last appearance for the national team took part on 6 September 2006 when coach Pițurcă sent him on the field in the 78th minute to replace Ciprian Marica in a 2–0 away win over Albania at the Euro 2008 qualifiers.[42]

For representing his country at the Euro 2000 final tournament, Ganea was decorated by President of Romania Traian Băsescu on 25 March 2008 with the Ordinul "Meritul Sportiv" – (The Medal "The Sportive Merit") class III.[49]

International stats

Appearances and goals by national team and year[42]
National team Year Apps Goals
Romania 1999 9 6
2000 10 3
2001 6 2
2002 8 4
2003 7 4
2004 4 0
2005 0 0
2006 1 0
Total 45 19
Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ganea goal.
List of international goals scored by Ionel Ganea[42]
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 3 March 1999 Stadionul Național, Bucharest, Romania {{ Template:Yesno alias = Estonia flag alias = Flag of Estonia.svg flag alias-naval = Naval Jack of Estonia.svg link alias-naval = Estonian Navy flag alias-army=Flag of Estonian Land Forces.svg link alias-army=Estonian Land Forces flag alias-air force =Flag of the Estonia Air Force.png link alias-air force = Estonian Air Force flag alias-navy = Naval Ensign of Estonia.svg link alias-navy = Estonian Navy border-naval = size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|2–0 || rowspan="2"|Friendly

2 2–0
3 28 April 1999 Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania {{ Template:Yesno alias = Belgium flag alias = Flag of Belgium (civil).svg flag alias-government = Government Ensign of Belgium.svg flag alias-state = Flag of Belgium.svg flag alias-1830 = Flag of Belgium (1830).svg flag alias-1858 = Royal ensign of Belgium (1858).svg flag alias-army = Flag of the Belgian Land Component.svg link alias-army = Belgian Land Component flag alias-naval = Naval Ensign of Belgium.svg link alias-naval = Belgian Navy flag alias-air force = Air Force Ensign of Belgium.svg link alias-air force = Belgian Air Component flag alias-navy = Naval Ensign of Belgium.svg link alias-navy = Belgian Navy size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || Friendly

4 9 June 1999 Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania {{ Template:Yesno alias = Azerbaijan flag alias = Flag of Azerbaijan.svg flag alias-1918 = Flag of Azerbaijan 1918.svg flag alias-1991 = Flag of Azerbaijan (1991–2013).svg flag alias-naval = Naval Flag of Azerbaijan.svg link alias-naval = Azerbaijani Navy flag alias-army = Flag of Azerbaijani Land Forces.svg link alias-army = Azerbaijani Land Forces flag alias-air force = AzAF Flag of Azerbaijan.png link alias-air force = Azerbaijani Air Force flag alias-navy = Naval Flag of Azerbaijan.svg link alias-navy = Azerbaijani Navy size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || style="text-align:center"|4–0 || UEFA Euro 2000 qualification

5 19 September 1999 Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz, Liechtenstein {{ Template:Yesno alias = Liechtenstein flag alias = Flag of Liechtenstein.svg flag alias-1719 = Flag of Liechtenstein (1719-1852).svg flag alias-1852 = Flag of Liechtenstein (1852-1921).svg flag alias-1921 = Flag of Liechtenstein (1921–1937).svg flag alias-1937 = Flag of Liechtenstein (1937–1982).svg size = name = variant = altlink = national football team

}} || style="text-align:center"|2–0 || rowspan=2 style="text-align:center"|3–0 || rowspan="2"|UEFA Euro 2000 qualification

6 3–0
7 26 April 2000 Stadionul Gheorghe Hagi, Constanța, Romania {{ Template:Yesno alias = Cyprus flag alias = Flag of Cyprus.svg flag alias-1878 = Flag of the United Kingdom.svg flag alias-1881 = Flag of Cyprus (1881–1922).svg flag alias-colonial = Blue Ensign of Cyprus (1922).svg flag alias-April 1960 = Flag of Cyprus (1960).svg flag alias-1960 = Flag of Cyprus (1960–2006).svg link alias-army = Cypriot Ground Forces size = name = variant = altlink = national football team

}} || style="text-align:center"|2–0 || style="text-align:center"|2–0 || Friendly

8 20 June 2000 Stade du Pays de Charleroi, Charleroi, Belgium {{ Template:Yesno alias = England flag alias = Flag of England.svg flag alias-naval = English White Ensign 1620.svg link alias-naval = Royal Navy flag alias-navy = English White Ensign 1620.svg link alias-navy = Royal Navy link alias-cricket = England cricket team empty = England Saxons size = name = variant = altlink = national football team altvar = football

}} || style="text-align:center"|3–2 || style="text-align:center"|3–2 || UEFA EURO 2000 Group A

9 3 September 2000 Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania {{ Template:Yesno alias = Lithuania flag alias = Flag of Lithuania.svg flag alias-1918 = Flag of Lithuania 1918-1940.svg flag alias-1988 = Flag of Lithuania (1988-2004).svg flag alias-naval = Naval Ensign of Lithuania.svg link alias-naval = Lithuanian Naval Force flag alias-military=Flag of the Lithuanian Armed Forces.png link alias-military=Lithuanian Armed Forces flag alias-army = Flag of the Lithuanian Army.svg link alias-army = Lithuanian Land Force flag alias-navy=Flag of Lithuania (state).svg link alias-navy = Lithuanian Naval Force flag alias-air force=Air Force Ensign of Lithuania.svg link alias-air force=Lithuanian Air Force size = name = altlink = national football team altvar = football variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || World Cup 2002 qualification

10 28 February 2001 GSP Stadium, Nicosia, Cyprus {{ Template:Yesno alias = Lithuania flag alias = Flag of Lithuania.svg flag alias-1918 = Flag of Lithuania 1918-1940.svg flag alias-1988 = Flag of Lithuania (1988-2004).svg flag alias-naval = Naval Ensign of Lithuania.svg link alias-naval = Lithuanian Naval Force flag alias-military=Flag of the Lithuanian Armed Forces.png link alias-military=Lithuanian Armed Forces flag alias-army = Flag of the Lithuanian Army.svg link alias-army = Lithuanian Land Force flag alias-navy=Flag of Lithuania (state).svg link alias-navy = Lithuanian Naval Force flag alias-air force=Air Force Ensign of Lithuania.svg link alias-air force=Lithuanian Air Force size = name = altlink = national football team altvar = football variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || rowspan="2" style="text-align:center"|3–0 || rowspan="2"|Friendly

11 2–0
12 13 February 2002 Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France {{ Template:Yesno alias = France flag alias = Flag of France.svg flag alias-1790 = Flag of France (1790–1794).svg flag alias-1794 = Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).svg flag alias-1814 = Flag of the Kingdom of France (1814-1830).svg flag alias-1830 = Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).svg flag alias-1848 = Drapeau france 1848.svg flag alias-1848a = Drapeau france 1848.svg flag alias-1848b = Flag of France (1794–1815, 1830–1958).svg flag alias-1974 = Flag of France (lighter variant).svg flag alias-naval = Civil and Naval Ensign of France.svg flag alias-naval-1790 = Flag of French-Navy-Revolution.svg flag alias-air force = Flag of France.svg link alias-air force = French Air and Space Force flag alias-coast guard = French Maritime Gendarmerie racing stripe.svg border-coast guard = link alias-coast guard = French Maritime Gendarmerie flag alias-army = Flag of France.svg link alias-army = French Army link alias-naval = French Navy flag alias-navy = Civil and Naval Ensign of France.svg link alias-navy = French Navy size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|1–2 || style="text-align:center"|1–2 || Friendly

13 27 March 2002 Stadionul Gheorghe Hagi, Constanța, Romania {{ Template:Yesno alias = Ukraine flag alias = Flag of Ukraine.svg flag alias-1918 = Flag of Ukrainian People's Republic 1917.svg flag alias-1991 = Flag of Ukraine (1991–1992).svg flag alias-1991b = Flag of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic (1949–1991).svg flag alias-army = Ensign of the Ukrainian Ground Forces.svg flag alias-military = Ensign of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.svg link alias-military = Armed Forces of Ukraine flag alias-marines = Flag of the Ukrainian Naval Infantry.svg link alias-marines = Ukrainian Marine Corps link alias-army = Ukrainian Ground Forces flag alias-coast guard = Sea Guard Ensign of Ukraine (dress).svg link alias-coast guard = Ukrainian Sea Guard flag alias-naval = Naval Ensign of Ukraine.svg flag alias-naval-1918 = Naval Ensign of Ukraine 1918 July.svg link alias-naval = Ukrainian Navy flag alias-air force = Ensign of the Ukrainian Air Force.svg link alias-air force = Ukrainian Air Force flag alias-navy = Naval Ensign of Ukraine.svg link alias-navy = Ukrainian Navy size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|4–0 || style="text-align:center"|4–1 || Friendly

14 17 April 2002 Zdzisław Krzyszkowiak Stadium, Bydgoszcz, Poland {{ Template:Yesno alias = Poland flag alias = Flag of Poland.svg flag alias-state = Flag of Poland (with coat of arms).svg flag alias-1815 = Flag of the Congress of Poland.svg flag alias-1919 = Flag of Poland (1919-1928).svg flag alias-1928 = Flag of Poland (1928–1980).svg flag alias-1955 = Flag of Poland (with coat of arms, 1955-1980).svg flag alias-1980 = Flag of Poland (with coat of arms, 1980-1990).svg flag alias-1990 = Flag of Poland (with coat of arms).svg flag alias-naval = PL navy flag IIIRP.svg border-naval = flag alias-naval-1919 = Naval Ensign of IIRP v1.svg border-naval-1919 = flag alias-naval-1946 = Naval Ensign of PRL v1.svg border-naval-1946 = flag alias-naval-auxiliary = Flaga pomocniczych jednostek pływających Polskiej Marynarki Wojennej.svg flag alias-naval-auxiliary-1955 = POL Bandera pjp PRL v1.svg link alias-naval = Polish Navy flag alias-navy = Naval Ensign of Poland.svg border-navy = link alias-navy = Polish Navy flag alias-marines = Flag of the Polish Land Forces.svg border-marines = link alias-marines = Polish 7th Coastal Defense Brigade flag alias-air force = Flag of the Polish Air Force.svg border-air force = link alias-air force = Polish Air Force flag alias-army = Flag of the Polish Land Forces.svg border-army = link alias-army = Polish Land Forces size = size flag alias-naval = 25px size flag alias-naval-1919 = 25px size flag alias-naval-1946 = 25px size flag alias-air force = 25px name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || style="text-align:center"|2–1 || Friendly

15 7 September 2002 Koševo City Stadium, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina {{ Template:Yesno alias = Bosnia and Herzegovina flag alias = Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg flag alias-1992 = Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1998).svg link alias-army = Bosnian Ground Forces size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|3–0 || style="text-align:center"|3–0 || UEFA Euro 2004 qualification

16 12 February 2003 GSZ Stadium, Larnaca, Cyprus {{ Template:Yesno alias = Slovakia flag alias = Flag of Slovakia.svg flag alias-1939 = Flag of Slovakia (1939–1945).svg flag alias-1990 = Flag of Slovakia (1939–1945).svg Slovak Ground Forces size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|2–1 || style="text-align:center"|2–1 || Friendly

17 7 June 2003 Stadionul Ion Oblemenco, Craiova, Romania {{ Template:Yesno alias = Bosnia and Herzegovina flag alias = Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg flag alias-1992 = Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1998).svg link alias-army = Bosnian Ground Forces size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|2–0 || style="text-align:center"|2–0 || UEFA Euro 2004 qualification

18 11 June 2003 Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway {{safesubst: Template:Yesno alias = Norway flag alias = Flag of Norway.svg flag alias-old kingdom = Royal Standard of Norway.svg flag alias-1814 = Flag of Norway (1814–1821).svg flag alias-1818 = Swedish and Norwegian merchant flag 1818-1844.svg flag alias-1844 = Norge-Unionsflagg-1844.svg flag alias-state = Flag of Norway, state.svg border-state = flag alias-army = Flag of the Norwegian Army.svg border-army = link alias-army = Norwegian Army flag alias-war = Flag of Norway, state.svg link alias-war = Norwegian Armed Forces border-war = flag alias-naval = Naval Jack of Norway.svg border-naval = link alias-naval = Royal Norwegian Navy flag alias-air force = Royal Norwegian Air Force Flag.svg border-air force = link alias-air force = Royal Norwegian Air Force flag alias-navy = Flag of Norway, state.svg border-navy = link alias-navy = Royal Norwegian Navy flag alias-coast guard = Norwegian Coast Guard Racing Stripe.svg link alias-coast guard = Norwegian Coast Guard border-coast guard = size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|1–0 || style="text-align:center"|1–1 || UEFA Euro 2004 qualification

19 6 September 2003 Stadionul Astra, Ploiești, Romania {{ Template:Yesno alias = Luxembourg flag alias = Flag of Luxembourg.svg flag alias-civil = Civil Ensign of Luxembourg.svg size = name = altlink = national football team variant =

}} || style="text-align:center"|3–0 || style="text-align:center"|4–0 || UEFA Euro 2004 qualification

Managerial career

Ionel Ganea had his first coaching experience in 2009 when he was the assistant of Cornel Țălnar at Dinamo București.[50] In 2010 he became the head coach of the club's satellite in the third league.[51][52][53][54] After a short spell at Sănătatea Cluj, he had his only experience coaching abroad when in March 2012 he signed with Moldovan side Rapid Ghidighici where he coached compatriots Mădălin Militaru and Alexandru Bălțoi.[51][52][55]

In January 2013, Ganea had his first experience coaching in the Romanian top-league, Liga I when he came in charge of Universitatea Cluj which he managed to help avoid relegation.[51][52][56][57] However, next season in September he was dismissed by the club's officials.[52][58][59]

At the beginning of the 2014–15 season he was appointed head coach at Rapid București with the objective of saving the club from relegation.[52][60] In September 2014 after a 3–0 loss in front of Dinamo București and the team being on a relegation position, the club owner Valerii Moraru replaced him with Marian Rada.[61]

With five rounds before the end of the 2014–15 Liga III season, Dunărea Călărași appointed him as head coach, Ganea managing to win all the games and gain promotion to Liga II.[62][63] In the first half of the following season he led Dunărea to the first position, leaving afterwards to coach Liga I club, FC Voluntari where he led the team 11 rounds, being dismissed after a 2–0 loss with CS Universitatea Craiova.[62][64][65][66][67] After one year and a half without an appointment, in April 2017, Ganea took charge of ASA Târgu Mureș but the spell was unsuccessful as the team relegated to the second division.[68][69][70] He then coached ACS Poli Timișoara in the second division but left after three games, being unsatisfied with the training conditions provided by the club.[71][72]

In September 2020 he made a comeback at Dunărea Călărași, this time working as a technical director, head coach being Cristian Pustai but he left the club in the summer of the following year as the team had financial problems and did not pay him for several months.[62][73]

Controversies

At the beginning of his career, while playing at FC Brașov, Ganea beat up the team captain Dorel Purdea.[74][75][76][77][78][79]

During his stay at Universitatea Craiova, Ganea was involved in several controversies. Ganea kicked his teammate Cornel Frăsineanu in the mouth, which left him without a few teeth and for a while he had to eat using a straw.[75][76][77][80][81][82][83] Eugen Trică tried to calm him down but Ganea threatened to beat him too so Trică backed off.[80][82][83] He also had a fight with Silvian Cristescu who threw a massage table at his head.[75][76][78] On 2 May 1998 Rapid București needed to win the match against Universitatea Craiova in order to be sure that they win the Divizia A title so they agreed with George Ilinca who was "U" Craiova's owner to let them win the game. Some players, including Ganea did not agree to take part in the arrangement, the game ended 2–2 with both of Craiova's goals being scored by Ganea, and the title was won by Steaua București.[84][85][86]

At VfB Stuttgart he had a fight with teammate Jochen Seitz, for which he was punished by the club with a 10.000 marks fine.[76][87] One day Ganea was eating an ice cream and coach Felix Magath saw him and told him that he shouldn't be eating food that contains too many calories because he has weight issues, Ganea got mad and threw the ice cream at him.[75][76][77][81]

In a match at Euro 2000 against England, Ganea was tackled hard by Sol Campbell but the referee did not take any measure against him, so he waited for Campbell to get close to him and when none of the referees were watching he hit him and cussed him: "Motherfucker! Bitch!".[88][89] In 2001, he had a fight with the goalkeeper Stelea in a training session that took part before a Romania – Italy game.[77][81][90] During the match with the Italians, the striker was one step away from hitting his coach László Bölöni, because he was mad that the coach left him on the bench.[75][76][77][78][81][91] During Romania's cantonment for the 2002 World Cup qualification play-off against Slovenia, Ganea played rummy on money with Daniel Chiriță and feeling that Chiriță was cheating, he punched him in the eye, afterwards jumping on him to beat him, before the other teammates intervened to stop him.[92] While playing for Romania against Scotland in April 2004, he tackled Celtic defender John Kennedy resulting in a knee injury that left Kennedy unable to play for three years. Kennedy has since been forced to retire from professional football as a result of this and subsequent injuries.[74][93]

Steven Gerrard's autobiography contains an episode about an incident between him and Ionel Ganea in a Wolverhampton – Liverpool game played in January 2004: "He tore my leg from the knee to the ankle. Under the puttee, my leg was cut deep, a nasty wound". After finding out what Gerrard wrote about him in his autobiography Ganea told the press:"I inform Gerrard that when I write my autobiography, I will not mention him. I will not have room for little girls".[78][88][89][94][95] In April 2006 he was involved in more controversy when he criticised the Wolverhampton Wanderers manager at that time, Glenn Hoddle, claiming "he is the most difficult manager I have worked with in my career".[96] Hoddle also fined him with a one-week salary for fighting at a training session with a teammate.[97][98]

While playing for Rapid București in a match against Universitatea Craiova he hit opponent's Michael Baird's mouth with his head during half-time.[75][76][78][81]

In August 2007 after a Unirea Urziceni – Politehnica Timișoara game, the striker had a conflict with the president of Unirea Urziceni Mihai Stoica, with Ganea grabbing him by the neck until the Gendarmery officers separated them.[75][81] One week later, Ganea was banned for 22 matches, which were later reduced to 16, after attacking one of the assistant referees after being sent off during a match between his club Politehnica Timișoara and Rapid București.[81][99][100] In his first match played against CFR Cluj after executing the 16 match suspension, he had a verbal conflict with former Universitatea Craiova teammate Eugen Trică before the beginning of the match, being close to start a fight after the end of the match.[100][101]

In 2012 while attending Ioan Drăgan's funeral, who was his wedding's Godfather and a former FC Brașov teammate, he almost got into a fight with the priest, being unsatisfied of the way he was preaching.[74][75]

While coaching Universitatea Cluj he was accused by player Cristian Mureșan of beating him up but Ganea denied the incident.[102][103][104]

During his coaching period at FC Voluntari after a 1–0 victory against CSMS Iași he had a conflict with a female journalist named Alina Iosub in which he offended and cussed her, she also threatened him by saying that if he comes to Botoșani, he won't leave there alive.[79][105][106]

His wife, Dana, with which he was married for over 24 years accused him of physical and verbal domestic violence and filled for divorce several times, also asking for a restraining order against him.[107][108][109][110]

Personal life

His son, George is also a footballer.[111][112]

On 9 May 2025, Ganea was involved in a car accident.[113] His 2-year-old son, who was riding in the car with him, suffered a traumatic brain injury, and passed away on 6 June 2025.[114]

Honours

Player

Universitatea Craiova

Rapid București

VfB Stuttgart

Dinamo București

Individual

Manager

Dunărea Călărași

References

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  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  15. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  16. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  17. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  18. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  19. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  20. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  21. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  22. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  23. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  24. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  25. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  26. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  27. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  28. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  29. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  30. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  31. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  32. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  33. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  34. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  35. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  36. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  37. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  38. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  39. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  40. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  41. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  42. ↑ a b c d e f Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  43. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  44. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  45. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  46. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  47. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  48. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  49. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  50. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  51. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  52. ↑ a b c d e Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  53. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  54. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  55. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  56. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  57. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  58. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  59. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  60. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  61. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  62. ↑ a b c d Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  63. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  64. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  65. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  66. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  67. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  68. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  69. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  70. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  71. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  72. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  73. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  74. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  75. ↑ a b c d e f g h Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  76. ↑ a b c d e f g Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  77. ↑ a b c d e Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  78. ↑ a b c d e Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  79. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  80. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  81. ↑ a b c d e f g Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  82. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  83. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  84. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  85. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  86. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  87. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  88. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  89. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  90. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  91. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  92. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  93. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  94. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  95. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  96. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  97. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  98. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  99. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  100. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  101. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  102. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  103. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  104. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  105. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  106. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  107. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  108. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  109. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  110. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  111. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  112. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  113. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  114. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".

Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".

External links

Template:Liga I top scorers Script error: No such module "national squad". Script error: No such module "navboxes". Template:ACS Poli Timișoara managers Template:ASA Târgu Mureș managers Template:FC Dunărea Călărași managers Template:FC Rapid București managers Template:FC Universitatea Cluj managers Template:FC Voluntari managersScript error: No such module "navboxes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".

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