Ioan Sabău

Ioan Sabău
Sabău in 2018
Personal information
Full name Ioan Ovidiu Sabău
Date of birth (1968-02-12) 12 February 1968 (age 58)
Place of birth Câmpia Turzii, Romania
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position Midfielder
Youth career
1982–1985 Universitatea Cluj
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1985–1987 Universitatea Cluj 35 (4)
1988 ASA Târgu Mureș 12 (2)
1988–1990 Dinamo București 49 (8)
1990–1992 Feyenoord 39 (11)
1992–1996 Brescia 99 (10)
1996–1997 Reggiana 19 (1)
1997–1998 Brescia 7 (1)
1998–2000 Rapid București 43 (2)
2000–2001 Universitatea Cluj 19 (6)
2001–2003 Rapid București 35 (1)
2005 Gaz Metan Mediaș 1 (0)
Total 358 (46)
International career
1988–2001 Romania 55 (8)
Managerial career
2000–2001 Universitatea Cluj (player/coach)
2003 Universitatea Cluj
2003–2005 Gaz Metan Mediaș
2005–2009 Gloria Bistrița
2009–2010 Politehnica Timișoara
2010–2011 FCM Târgu Mureș
2012 FCM Târgu Mureș
2012 Rapid București
2013–2014 ASA Târgu Mureș
2023 Universitatea Cluj
2023–2025 Universitatea Cluj
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ioan "Neluțu" Ovidiu Sabău (born 12 February 1968) is a Romanian professional football manager and former player. He played as a midfielder for clubs in Romania, Italy, and the Netherlands, including Universitatea Cluj, Dinamo București, Feyenoord, Brescia, and Rapid București.

Sabău earned 55 caps for the Romania national team, representing his country at the 1990 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 1996. After retiring from playing, he managed several Romanian clubs, including Gaz Metan Mediaș, Poli Timișoara, and Universitatea Cluj, whom he coached to the Romanian Cup final in the 2022–23 season, which they lost in a penalty shootout.

Club career

Universitatea Cluj and ASA Târgu Mureș

Sabău, nicknamed Moțul due to his ambition, a trait associated with the people from Țara Moților, was born on 12 February 1968 in Câmpia Turzii, Romania.[1][2][3] He began playing junior-level football in 1985 at Universitatea Cluj, under the guidance of coaches Alexa Uifăleanu and Nicolae Szoboszlay.[1][2][3] He made his professional debut playing for Universitatea in the 1984–85 Divizia B season under coach Remus Vlad, helping the team win promotion to Divizia A.[2][4] In the following season, he made his debut in the Romanian top-league on 8 March 1986, replacing Nicolae Bucur for the last nine minutes of a 1–0 loss to Rapid București, also under coach Remus Vlad.[1][2][5] In 1988, Sabău had offers from Dinamo București and Steaua București, choosing to play for the first because of coach Mircea Lucescu's project of building a team composed of mainly young players like himself.[2][6][7] But Steaua's officials with president Ion Alecsandrescu and the relatives of dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu, his son Valentin who was Steaua's unofficial president and brother Ilie who was a Romanian army general, insisted and pressured Sabău on several occasions to sign with the club, especially during his military service in which he played for Ministry of National Defence club and friend team of Steaua, ASA Târgu Mureș.[2][6][7] He refused, eventually going to Dinamo which gave four players to Universitatea Cluj in exchange for him, including Florin Prunea.[2][6][7]

Dinamo București

Sabău with Dinamo București c. 1989

In his first season with The Red Dogs, the team reached the quarter-finals in the 1988–89 European Cup Winners' Cup where they were eliminated on the away goals rule after 1–1 on aggregate by Sampdoria.[1][8][9] In the following season, the club won The Double, as Lucescu gave him 24 league appearances in which he scored five goals, and also scored one goal in the 6–4 victory in the Cupa României final against Steaua.[1][6][10][11] In the same season, Sabău played seven matches, scoring two goals against Panathinaikos in the 1989–90 European Cup Winners' Cup where Dinamo reached the semi-finals, being eliminated after 2–0 on aggregate by Anderlecht.[1][6][12]

Feyenoord

After the 1989 Romanian Revolution, Sabău was signed by Dutch club Feyenoord which paid for his transfer over $1 million.[1][13][14] He made his Eredivise debut on 1 September 1990 under coach Gunder Bengtsson in a 6–0 home win over MVV Maastricht in which he scored once.[15][16] In his first season, he won the 1990–91 KNVB Cup, coach Wim Jansen using him the entire match in the 1–0 victory against BVV Den Bosch in the final.[1][13][17] In the following season, he was teammates with compatriot Marian Damaschin.[1][13] The club reached the 1991–92 European Cup Winners' Cup semi-finals, Sabău playing three matches in the campaign.[1] Subsequently, he won another KNVB Cup, coach Jansen sending him in the 75th minute to replace Rob Witschge in the 3–0 win over Roda in the final.[1][13][18]

Brescia and Reggiana

In 1992 he was sold for over €1 million by Feyenoord to Mircea Lucescu's "Brescia Romena", as he was teammates there with fellow Romanians Gheorghe Hagi, Florin Răducioiu, Dorin Mateuț and Dănuț Lupu.[1][2][19][20][21] He made his Serie A debut on 5 September 1992 in a 0–0 draw against Napoli, three months later scoring his first goal in a 1–1 draw against Atalanta.[22] At the end of his first season, the team was relegated to Serie B, but Sabău was named the best Serie A right midfielder.[1][2][19][20] In his second season with Brescia, he helped them win the Anglo-Italian Cup, defeating Notts County 1–0 in the final at Wembley and also contributed to their third-place finish in Serie B and subsequent promotion back to Serie A.[1][19][20] However, they were relegated once again at the end of the 1994–95 season.[1][19][20] He spent one more season with The Lioness in Serie B.[1][19][20] In July 1996, Lucescu signed with Serie A club, Reggiana, bringing Sabău with him, but the team finished the season in last place.[1][19][23] Subsequently, he returned to Brescia where on 16 May 1998 he made his last Serie A appearance in a 3–1 away victory against Parma, totaling 70 matches with six goals in the competition.[1][24]

Rapid, "U" Cluj and Mediaș

Sabău returned to Romania in 1998 at Rapid București, on the advice of coach Mircea Lucescu.[1][10][25][26] He appeared in 22 matches in which he scored one goal in the 1998–99 season, helping the team win its first title after 32 years.[1][10][25][26] In the 2000–01 season, he was a player-coach at Universitatea Cluj in Divizia C, helping the team achieve promotion to Divizia B.[1][7][27][28] However, he departed from the club shortly thereafter due to disagreements with club officials.[7][27] In 2001, Sabău returned to play for Rapid, and in his first season, he won the Cupa României, as coach Mircea Rednic used him the entire match in the 2–1 victory against Dinamo București in the final.[1][29] He started the next season by winning the 2002 Supercupa României, with coach Rednic using him the full 90 minutes in another 2–1 win over Dinamo.[1][26][30] They finished the 2002–03 season as champions, Sabău scoring once in the 16 matches Rednic played him.[1][10] He made his last Divizia A appearance on 24 May 2003 in Rapid's 3–0 home victory against UTA Arad, totaling 172 games with 17 goals in the competition and 25 games with three goals in European competitions.[1] Sabău made his last appearance as a footballer at the end of the 2004–05 Divizia B season for Gaz Metan Mediaș, a team for which he was also the head coach at that time.[1][27] Throughout his career, Sabău was placed several times among the top five in the Romanian Footballer of the Year ranking, finishing second in 1989.[31]

International career

Sabău played 55 games and scored eight goals for Romania, making his debut on 3 February 1988 at age 19 under coach Emerich Jenei in a friendly which ended with a 2–0 away victory against Israel.[32][33] He scored his first goal three days later in a 2–2 friendly draw against Poland.[32]

Subsequently, he played six matches during the successful 1990 World Cup qualifiers, scoring two goals, one in a 3–0 win over Greece and one in the 3–1 victory against Denmark which was decisive for the qualification to the final tournament.[32] There, he was used by coach Emerich Jenei as a starter in all four matches, as Romania got eliminated by Ireland in the round of 16.[32][34] Sabău played seven games and scored one goal in the Euro 1992 qualifiers, and then made eight appearances during the successful 1994 World Cup qualifiers, but could not be part of the final tournament squad due to an injury.[2][32][35] He played one game in the successful Euro 1996 qualifiers.[32] Afterwards he was selected by coach Anghel Iordănescu to be part of the final tournament squad, but did not play a single match, being injured.[32][35][36]

Sabău played three games during the successful Euro 2000 qualifiers, but was not selected in the squad for the final tournament.[32] He made his last three appearances for the national team during the 2002 World Cup qualifiers, of which one was in a 2–0 away victory in a group match against rivals Hungary, and then two in both legs of the play-off against Slovenia which was lost with 3–2 on aggregate.[32]

For representing his country at the 1990 World Cup, Sabău was decorated by President of Romania Traian Băsescu on 25 March 2008 with the Ordinul "Meritul Sportiv" – (The Medal "The Sportive Merit") class III.[37][38]

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year.[32]
National team Year Apps Goals
Romania 1988 9 2
1989 8 3
1990 12 2
1991 5 0
1992 3 0
1993 5 0
1994 1 0
1995 2 1
1996 2 0
1997 0 0
1998 2 0
1999 3 0
2000 1 0
2001 3 0
Total 56 8

International goals

Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Sabău goal.[32]
List of international goals scored by Ioan Sabău
Goal Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1 6 February 1988 Kiryat Eliezer Stadium, Haifa, Israel  Poland 2–1 2–2 Friendly
2 2 November 1988 Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania  Greece 3–0 3–0 1990 World Cup qualifiers
3 29 March 1989 Municipal Stadium, Sibiu, Romania  Italy 1–0 1–0 Friendly
4 12 April 1989 Stadion Wojska Polskiego, Warsaw, Poland  Poland 1–1 1–2 Friendly
5 15 November 1989 Stadionul Steaua, Bucharest, Romania  Denmark 2–1 3–1 1990 World Cup qualifiers
6 25 April 1990 Kiryat Eliezer Stadium, Haifa, Israel  Israel 3–0 4–1 Friendly
7 5 December 1990 Stadionul Național, Bucharest, Romania  San Marino 1–0 6–0 Euro 1992 qualifiers
8 15 February 1995 İzmir Atatürk Stadium, İzmir, Turkey  Turkey 1–0 1–1 Friendly

Managerial career

Sabău started his coaching career in 2000 at Universitatea Cluj in Divizia C, also being a player, helping the team gain promotion to Divizia B.[7][27] He left shortly afterwards following a conflict with the club's officials.[1][7][28][27] At the beginning of the 2003–04 Divizia B season, he returned to Universitatea, but left after only two games.[39] He went to coach fellow Divizia B team Gaz Metan Mediaș for two seasons, but did not manage to win a promotion to Divizia A.[27][40][41] In 2005 he went to coach Divizia A club Gloria Bistrița for four seasons, the highlight of this period being a sixth-place finish in the 2006–07 season.[40] The team also reached 2007 UEFA Intertoto Cup final, earning a 2–1 home victory against Atlético Madrid, but lost the second leg with 1–0, thus losing the final on the away goals rule.[40][42][43]

In the 2009–10 season, Sabău coached Politehnica Timișoara, eliminating UEFA Cup holders Shakhtar Donetsk in the third round of the 2009–10 Champions League, which was the team of his former coach, Mircea Lucescu.[27][40] Subsequently, they were eliminated by VfB Stuttgart in the next round, before reaching the 2009–10 Europa League group stage, where their campaign ended.[27][40][44] He helped Politehnica finish the championship in fifth place.[27] In the following years, he coached first league clubs FCM Târgu Mureș, on two occasions, and Rapid București, but also had a spell in the second league at ASA Târgu Mureș, without any notable results.[40][45]

In January 2023, after almost 10 years of inactivity, Sabău came back to coaching, signing with Universitatea Cluj.[46] The team reached the 2023 Cupa României final where they were defeated by Sepsi OSK.[47] He left the club after saving the team from relegation at the end of the season.[48] However, he came back to "U" in August 2023.[49] In the 2024–25 season, he helped the club finish in fourth place.[50] Subsequently, the club played in the second round of the 2025–26 Conference League, being eliminated with 2–1 on aggregate by Ararat-Armenia.[51] In October 2025, Sabău resigned, leaving "U" after the team's 10th-place standing following the first 13 rounds of the 2025–26 season.[52]

Personal life

Sabău is featured on the main cover of FIFA 96, shown being tackled by Andy Legg during the Anglo-Italian Cup final, while playing for Brescia against Notts County, and is the first Romanian to appear on the cover of a FIFA video game.[20][53][54] He is a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses.[55][56] Sports commentator Ilie Dobre wrote a book about him titled Ioan Ovidiu Sabău și Patima fotbalului (Ioan Ovidiu Sabău and the passion for football), which was released in 2002.[7][57]

Honours

Player

Universitatea Cluj

Dinamo București

Feyenoord

Brescia

Rapid București

Individual

Manager

Universitatea Cluj

Individual

References

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  36. ^ "România la Euro 1996: am început prost, am încheiat în genunchi. Generația de Aur zdruncinată din temelii, acuze de blat și adio pentru Răducioiu" [Romania at Euro 1996: We started badly, we finished on my knees. The Golden Generation shaken from its foundations, accusations of fraud and farewell to Răducioiu] (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. 9 June 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
    "Cel mai valoros lot al României trimis la EURO a fost cel din 1996. Generația de Aur nu s-a ridicat la așteptări" [The most valuable squad of Romania sent to the EURO was that of 1996. The Golden Generation did not live up to expectations] (in Romanian). Euronews.ro. 17 June 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
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  43. ^ "Gloria, oleee! Se împlinesc 10 ani de la victoria cu Atletico! Totul despre acea dublă de poveste!" [Gloria, oleee! It's been 10 years since the victory with Atletico! All about that story double!] (in Romanian). Sportulbistritean.ro. 28 July 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  44. ^ "Poli in "era" Iancu: 6 ani = 0 trofee! Din 2004 si pana in prezent Poli a fost pregatita de nu mai putin de 10 antrenori" [Poli in the Iancu "era": 6 years = 0 trophies! From 2004 until now, Poli has been trained by no less than 10 coaches] (in Romanian). Opiniatimisoarei.ro. 10 June 2011. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
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  46. ^ "Ioan Ovidiu Sabău revine în antrenorat după zece ani! Cu cine a semnat fostul internațional" [Ioan Ovidiu Sabău returns to coaching after ten years! Who did the former international sign with?] (in Romanian). Ziare.com. 2 January 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
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  50. ^ "10 jucători, OUT de la U Cluj! Ioan Ovidiu Sabău taie în carne vie: "N-au făcut față așteptărilor"" [10 players, OUT from U Cluj! Ioan Ovidiu Sabău cuts to the chase: "They didn't live up to expectations"] (in Romanian). Sport.ro. 27 May 2025. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
  51. ^ "Universitatea Cluj, eliminată după prelungiri de FC Ararat-Armenia din Conference League. Ioan Ovidiu Sabău: "E dureros, atât am putut"" [Universitatea Cluj, eliminated after extra time by FC Ararat-Armenia from the Conference League. Ioan Ovidiu Sabău: "It's painful, that's all I could do"] (in Romanian). Digi24.ro. 31 July 2025. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
  52. ^ ""Trebuie să vii cu ceva nou!" Ce nu a mai funcționat în relația Sabău - U Cluj? "Repetând anumite metode, jucătorii nu mai sunt receptivi"" ["You have to come up with something new!" What didn't work in the Sabău - U Cluj relationship? "By repeating certain methods, the players are no longer receptive"] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 18 October 2025. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
    "La 3 zile după ce a plecat de la U Cluj, Sabău i-a făcut praf: "Asta m-a durut! Am fost naiv, lipsă de respect"" [3 days after he left U Cluj, Sabău trashed him: "That hurt me! I was naive, disrespectful"] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 21 October 2025. Retrieved 31 October 2025.
  53. ^ "Singurul român de pe coperta jocului FIFA! Cum a apărut Ioan Sabău pe "coverul" ediției din 1996: "Nici nu știam asta! Cum fac să văd poza?"" [The only Romanian on the cover of the FIFA game! How Ioan Sabău appeared on the "cover" of the 1996 edition: "I didn't even know that! How do I see the picture?"] (in Romanian). Prosport.ro. 28 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  54. ^ "Singurul jucător român care a apărut pe coperta jocului FIFA din 1994 până în prezent. Cum arăta coperta jocului în fiecare ediţie" [The only Romanian player who appeared on the cover of the FIFA game from 1994 until now. What the cover of the game looked like in each edition] (in Romanian). Orangesport.ro. 28 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
  55. ^ (in Romanian) Daniel Conțescu "Iehovistul Sabău le-a arătat calea: 'Timișoara va câștiga titlul. După două înfrângeri, Dorinel va fi înjurat'" ("Jehovah's Witness Sabău Shows Them the Way: 'Timişoara Will Win the Title. After Two Defeats, Dorinel Will be Cussed Out'"), Evenimentul ZIlei, 17 March 2011; Retrieved 17 March 2011
  56. ^ Remus Răureanu; Marius Mărgărit (7 January 2020). "EXCLUSIV Ioan Ovidiu Sabău discută deschis despre apropierea de Martorii lui Iehova – De ce nu sărbătorește Crăciunul" (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. Retrieved 9 October 2025.
  57. ^ "Ioan Ovidiu Sabău, fotografii inedite din perioada Feyenoord. Omagiu din Țara Lalelelor adus "Moțului"" [Ioan Ovidiu Sabău, new photos from the Feyenoord period. Tribute from the Land of Tulips to "The Moț"] (in Romanian). Sportulclujean.ro. 13 February 2022. Retrieved 17 September 2022.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ioan_Sab%C4%83u