Daniel Pancu may lose his “pearl” at the end of the mercato » In exchange, he asks for two new players at CFR Cluj

Matei Ilie has been playing at CFR Cluj since 2023, after, during his junior years, he went through Italy, at Sesto Giovanili, Padua, Verona. The son of former footballer Costel Ilie aroused interest at the beginning of this year and even if nothing has materialized at the moment, the time has not passed.

In the press conference preceding the game with UTA Arad, scheduled for Wednesday evening, from 18:00, Pancu spoke about the possibility of losing Matei in the following days. But he knows that, in this context, he would need not one, but two central defenders to replace him.

Matei Ilie can leave CFR Cluj this winter

“I don't know if he will leave or not, the club is at the forefront. Of course, any departure of an important player, such as Matei at the moment, is important. Of course we had the first option available here, we are talking about Masic, but from my point of view, the couples that are the most difficult to homogenize are those of central defenders.

With central midfielders, things are easier because you have someone behind you, but the hardest are with central defenders, or at the moment Sheriff and Ilie are a welded central defender couple. So it will be a loss, for sure.

If Matei leaves, two defenders will have to come, not one. We are at the end of the transfer period, the situation is not pleasant for me, but at the same time I like these challenges. And, as far as I know, they are working on arrivals,” said Daniel Pancu, in the press conference preceding the match with UTA, extremely important in the economy of the play-off.

Matei Ilie, photo: Imago Images

Matei Ilie aroused interest

Since the beginning of the year, the 23-year-old stopper has been on the radar of several formations, and the Transylvanians are looking to find the best option to sell the former U21 international.

“I can't give you the names of the teams, but I don't hide that, at the moment, we have contacts in Portugal, Russia, Holland, Belgium, Turkey, Cyprus and Saudi Arabia. It's about a real interest in Ilia, but we haven't reached the last step with anyone at the moment, that is, a concrete offer. However, things are quite advanced on certain tracks”, said the player's manager, Pino Letterio, in an interview for GSP, a month ago.

They are good centre-backs in our league. I want to talk about the defender in whom I have a lot of confidence and I think he will reach a much higher level. I like Matei Ilie, from CFR Cluj. I think he has potential and I think he can become a central defender including for the national team

– Dorin Goian, at GSP Live

• Ilie Matei played 27 matches this season for CFR Cluj, in all competitions, scoring 3 goals and 3 assists

• 1.7 million euros is Ilie Matei's share on the specialized portal transfermarkt.com