For the fourth time since December
National coach has to be taken to hospital
March 29, 2026 – 1:18 p.mReading time: 1 min.
A medical emergency involving Romania’s national coach overshadowed the preparation for the friendly against Slovakia. The association is giving the all-clear for now.
Great concern for Mircea Lucescu: The 80-year-old Romanian national coach had to be taken to hospital due to cardiac arrhythmia. As the national association announced on Sunday afternoon, the coach felt unwell during a meeting before the final training session. “Thanks to the quick intervention of the medical staff, the trainer was quickly stabilized,” said the association.
“However, in order to exclude any risk,” Lucescu is currently at the University Hospital in Bucharest and will remain there for a few more days. According to the association, his condition is currently stable. According to his own statements, he had to be hospitalized three times in December. “When the doctors said I could continue working as a coach, I focused on what I could do for Romania,” he told the British Guardian. However, he did not want to go into further detail about his possible illness.
At the same time, he also admitted in an interview with the Guardian that he would have gladly resigned as national coach for health reasons if the association had found a suitable replacement. “But I don’t want to run away like a coward.”
Just last Thursday, Lucescu and his team lost 1-0 against Turkey in the playoff semi-finals of the World Cup qualification. The dream of participating in the World Cup for the first time since 1998 was dashed. He will definitely miss the friendly international match against Slovakia on Tuesday. Assistant coach and former national player Ionel Gane will look after the team.
