Article by Darius Stanescu – published on Thursday, June 26, 2025, 20:58 / Updated Thursday, June 26, 2025 20:58
Alexandru Maxim (34 years old), Gazantep's offensive midfielder, reported one of the most unhappy episodes in his career, namely the decision of Anghel Iordănescu (75 years), the former coach of Romania, not to convene in the final group for Euro 2016.
Alex Maxim played 9 matches in the qualifying campaign for Euro 2016, even managing a goal in the last match of Group F, ensuring then Romania's qualification for a final tournament after an 8 -year break.
Alex Maxim, about Iordănescu's words regarding his inconvocation to Euro 2016: “I was terribly offended by this”
Despite Maxim's constant presence in the 2014-2015 qualification campaign, Anghel Iordănescu, the Romanian coach at that time, decided to leave Maxim at home, missing a unique chance in the career of a footballer, to participate in a final tournament.
“I do not think you have to behave like this with a player of the national team. We were in the cantonment, we returned from the canton, we were a bigger lot, they kept us in Bucharest, they said” wait, wait. ” On the day they announced the lot, they sent me to the medical visit and at 7 o'clock in the morning until 4 in the afternoon I made the medical visit, through all the hospitals in Bucharest we walked to pay the medical visit, and at 7 o'clock I called me “You know, I go home, I do not need you”. Nea Puiu called me in the office and said, “I'm sorry, don't come with us, I don't need you at the euro, but to make a gift I can invite you to the first match and your family. ”
I got stuck. Honestly, I wanted to tell him: I think my answer wanted to be something like “if you want, I invite you and the whole family to the match”, I wanted to have a nausea reaction. I refrained, I had no reaction, because he is older than me and I respect him. He actually blocked me, honestly. He lifted me, he told me “success” and I got in the car and I cried from Mogoșoaia to the north, I cried and not just to the north, I think I cried a lot, about 2-3 hours, I cried in the car, I was actually shocked. My parents were calling me. I passed the moment easily, you finally resign, but mine suffered a lot for this.
With all the respect for Nea 'Puiu, I respect him as a man, that he is older than me, but for what he did and as a coach I consider, without disrespectful, that he offended me terribly through this. By what I showed, the whole campaign and the club team during that period, I deserved to be in the national team's group and can not come now 'Puiu to say that he has done the lot based on what he saw in Italy in the two weeks or at the friendly matches. One is to play two friendly matches and the other is to see how a pressure footballer reacts to a certain level. After all, there is a footballer.
In my head it was to go abroad, honestly. I was flattered, FCSB had a good team, Nea Gigi a good man and no dance style. We only heard on the phone, I was in Piatra Neamț on vacation. I was playing well at Pandurii. “Copile, children, living months in Bucharest to sign with Steaua, live with your parents.” But the very well-intentioned dance, it is the style of the dance and I told him that I appreciated a lot and I really enjoyed, I respect the star and I really liked the team. Not necessarily I was holding with them, but I was looking at the Star's then team. ”Said Alex Maxim in the framework Podcastului Iam Ștucan.
