Article by Justin Gafiuc, Tudor Belivacă – Published Sunday, October 19, 2025, 2:58 p.m. / Updated Sunday, October 19, 2025, 3:09 p.m.
U Cluj is looking for a replacement for Ioan Ovidiu Sabău on the technical bench, and one of the options is Toni Conceicao (63 years old), the former coach of the rivals from the city, CFR Cluj.
Toni Conceicao said that he was not called by Cluj, but he is willing to take over the team from Transylvania. The president of U Cluj did not rule out the Conceicao option either, even if they now have a long preliminary list of replacements.
Toni Conceicao is willing to come to U Cluj: “If an interesting offer comes from anywhere, I want to start working again”
“I had a discussion in the past with Cluj University, but it was not the right time, because I was in litigation with the Cameroonian federation and I had to wait for a verdict. Honestly, now no one has called me to take over the team after Sabau's departure. But I do not hide that, if an interesting offer comes from anywhere, I want to start the job again.
Lately we had proposals from the Arab area, China and Iran, but we turned them down for various reasons. If the phone rings from U Cluj, we'll talk, of course. I have energy, I don't miss anything that happens in Romanian football. Every weekend I watch the championship matches.
We saw, for example, how FCSB lost to Metaloglobus on Saturday night. Incredible! A result that left me speechless. I also watched Cluj University with FC Botoșani. I still have many friends in Cluj and I am ready to start working again”, Toni Conceicao told GSP.ro.
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Toni Conceicao coached at Estrela, Vitoria Setubal, Trofense, CFR Cluj, Belenenses, FC Brașov, Astra, Braga B, Moreirense, Olhanense, Al-Faisaly, Nea Salamis and Penafiel. Most recently, he was the Cameroon national team coach. He ended his tenure in Africa in 2022 and has been free of contract since then. He coached at CFR Cluj in three terms: in 2009, in the 2015-2016 season and in the 2018-2019 season.
Right now we are in a meeting to discuss the new coach. We have quite a long list in mind, I can't confirm anything for you at the moment about Conceicao, because first of all we want to narrow down the options, see who we start the first talks with. Let's see who wants it, how he sees the lot structure. We aim to announce the new staff by Tuesday-Wednesday.
– Dear Constantia for GSP
Under what conditions did Ioan Ovidiu Sabău leave the “red caps”: the Transylvanians renounced a “mirror termination clause”
“There was a termination clause in the mirror, but, considering the current situation and the relationship we had with Sabău, we decided to give up any claims of a financial nature. We will pay all the rights up to date,” Radu Constantea told GSP.
