Article by Andrei Crăiţoiu – published on Tuesday, April 15, 2025 21:29 / Updated Tuesday, April 15, 2025:29
Ciprian Panait has had several experiences in Romanian football, but never in the position of head coach. His career started at FCM Bacău, as a physical trainer, in the mandates of Cristi Popovici and Ionuț Lupescu.
Later, he arrived at Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț, under the command of Viorel Hizo, which he met and Rapid. After that, he returned to Vaslui, to Adrian Porumboiu's team, becoming an important piece in the staff of Augusto Inácio.
Panait was “principal” at Al Hilal won his youth championship
In 2016, Ciprian Panait decided to leave Romanian football and moved to Saudi Arabia to Al-Hilal. He led the Olympic team of the Saudi club, but also had seven matches as the head coach of the big team, when the team was left without a coach, being called interim.
At Al-Hilal, he won the champion title of Saudi Arabia twice with the U21 band. Later, he trained teams like Al Raed (Saudi Arabia), Batin (Saudi Arabia), Sohar (Oman) and Al-Kharaitiit (Qatar), his last team being Al Shabab, where he was the second team coach.
Ciprian Panait was awarded with a camel of Al Hilal
During the three -year period spent at Al Hilal, Ciprian Panait lived several unique moments. He told GSP.ro that, after winning the first champion title with the Olympic team, Under 21, he received a camel!
“I was called by one of the princes in the leadership. He pulled me next to him and said,” Myster, you took the title, you deserve a gift from me. ” I was wondering what the gift was and I woke up with a camel! I really didn't expect this! I took it, I left it in the care of those who were dealing with it and then sold it for $ 35,000“Says Panait.
Ciprian Panait performed at Al Hilal, double champion with the Olympic team
“An apartment reserved entirely to cigars”
Another unique moment spent when he was invited home by a prince who was related to Al Hilal. “He had a huge palace! At the break of a match we told us to go to see the house. A huge four-storey villa, with dozens of rooms, furnished at the highest level,” recalls the new head coach.
“We started to visit the palace, but after two floors we stopped. I shocked me when it opened a very large room, where it was a completely reserved apartment. If in Romania there are special boxes for something, there was a whole apartment! With standard temperature, with a certain humidity.”the disclosures sound.
No cinema rooms, prohibited movies
Al Hilal's experience most surprised Ciprian Panait. During the time he led the team, there were 52 malls in Riyad, but without any cinema!
“I couldn't believe when the team told me! They told me that they could not make cinema rooms because they should run very few movies, because the rules there are very strict and most productions would not be considered appropriate to the culture and Islamic beliefs. They have no way to allow movies with beats or other oddities“Says Panait.
Fabulous image of Riyad, Saudi Arabia
In Saudi Arabia, advertisements were censored
Ciprian Panait also revealed that certain advertisements are forbidden by Saudi. “I saw dozens of magazines and newspapers where the advertisements were blurred! The ones they considered to violate Islamic culture. Including the advertising spots on the television are censored, but also the posters on the streets or shops.”he says.
“There are no images of women to advertise on clothes. Before I left I read about a censored advertisement because next to a child in the pool appeared in a bathing suit. The child” dressed “totally, and the mother was replaced with Winnie from the cartoons!
The nightmare he lived in Oman: “Not for a million dollars a day!”
In addition to the experience in Saudi Arabia, Ciprian Panait also trained the Sohar team from Oman. There he was the best paid coach in the club's history, changing the philosophy. The period there, however, Panait considers it a nightmare.
“I told my agent. “Even if there is a team that gives me a million dollars a day, not per week, not on the moon, not per year, here, in Oman, I would not return.”. I have my reasons. Except for the national team, which is at another level and would be a challenge even without money. So great was the disappointment related to the conditions we found there and the organization, that the money does not matter ”, said Panait.
Unique image with Ciprian Panait at the table in Saudi Arabia
The disappointment of the Romanian technician was emphasized by the fact that his students came to tired workouts after a day's work. They worked in the army and police and made the shuttle to go to work daily.
My team captain woke up every morning, at 5-6 he had to be in the unit, 250 kilometers from the city where we operated. He had to stay at the unit until around 16 o'clock, after which he got in the car, driving 250 kilometers back to Sohar and came directly from the training. And that does not mean that he was coming to training just to show up, I was doing serious workout
Ciprian Panait, coach
Panait is a university lecturer and doctor in physical education
In addition to his career as a coach, Ciprian Panait currently holds the position of technical director of the Romanian Federation of Padbol, where he coordinates the development and certification of coaches in this emerging sport.
He is also a university lecturer at the National University of Physical Education and Sport (UNEFS) in Bucharest and has a doctorate in physical education, his research being focused on the biological and physical profiling of elite footballers.
