Article by Maria Olteanu – Published Monday, 08 December 2025, 13:18 / Updated Monday, 08 December 2025 13:31
Cristi Balaj (54 years old), former president of those from CFR Clujwill be the guest of the show “Prietenii lui Ovidiu”, moderated by Ovidiu Ioanițoaia, director of Gazeta Sporturlior, broadcast on Wednesday, December 10. He addressed several topics and spoke inclusively about Dan Petrescu's health problems (57 years old), who decided to temporarily withdraw from the activity, to treat himself.
Dan Petrescu left CFR Cluj at the end of August, after the categorical failure in Europe, score 2-7 with the Swedes from Hacken. He has been threatening to leave for some time, saying that he wants to have time for himself so that he can solve his health problems, which have given him a lot of trouble in recent months.
In the end, Petrescu no longer wanted to continue on the bench, feeling that his health problems were getting worse, and he took the necessary break to solve them. Now, four months away, Cristi Balaj, the former president of Cluj, spoke about the situation of the coaching title.
EXCLUSIVE VIDEO. Cristi Balaj, about Dan Petrescu's state of health: “He was treated with a Chinese healer, things are evolving for the better!”
“Yes, of course, I've kept in touch with Dan Petrescu before. I talk to him, I went out to dinner with him, he is in Cluj. Get treatment, it's for the better, that's important. He is staying at a hotel in Cluj, and I have become attached to many people there. He is undergoing treatment there, that's why he didn't come to Bucharest.
I went, I took him to treatment, I brought him, I went out to dinner with him, I went for a walk in the park with him, I brought him a bicycle. He gave up the bike. My mother came, she made him the beef salad, the poor man didn't eat it and told me that, I didn't even tell my mother, he will find out now. But he did not feel well that day and did not eat it. Or two days in a row he didn't feel well and didn't eat his mother's salad. But I promise that they will make them again and they will send them again.
It was at one point, yes, he was treated with a Chinese healer, but know that that Chinese is good. I know people he healed…
It's for the better, that's important, that he took steps, steps are important, he also did a recent checkup, things have evolved for the better. It's just that he has to undergo treatment”, said Cristi Balaj, on the show “Prietenii lui Ovidiu”.
I need a longer break. I also had some health problems, I have to solve them, I haven't solved them all yet. I haven't been feeling well at all these days. I made a decision that is good for me and for the club. I want to take a break, one year, two, three, four, five. If I'm healthy, I'll be back
– Dan Petrescu, in August, when he announced that he was resigning from CFR Cluj
