Gheorghe Hagi becomes Romania's coach and can line up the “11” he only dreamed of!

Hagi, 61 years old, is preparing to return to the helm of the first representative team after a quarter of a century. And he will work with many of the players he himself created, at Viitorul/Farul, or at least with whom he worked at Dobrogeni, whom he trained.

From the beginning, the Hagi Academy had the goal of populating all the national teams with players. It happened, it happens.

In an idealistic scenario, Hagi could line up with the Romanian national team even a starting formula composed exclusively of players polished by him in the last 10-15 years. Most of them are trained 100% by the Hagi Academy, some went to Farul, formerly Viitorul, when Hagi was the coach.

What would an “11” of the Romanian national team look like with players released by Gică Hagi:

• Aioani – Cr. Manea, V. Ghiță, M. Popescu, Borza – Cicâldău, R. Marin, Fl. Tănase – I. Hagi – Drăguș, L. Munteanu

The system: 4-3-1-2, the one used by Farul for the title in 2023. And there would be other options, such as Florinel Coman, Tudor Băluță, Mitriță. Indeed, it is a hypothetical “11”. Ionuț Radu, Rațiu, Drăgușin will not be missing from the national team, names that did not learn football at the Hagi Academy.

The big problem of the “King” was this, that he could never keep his best players, he was financially constrained to sell them to other clubs: “The lighthouse always starts from scratch! The lighthouse always has to find solutions. What are we building, like the craftsman Manole… What was built yesterday falls and you start all over again”.

2 titlesconquered coach Hagi in League 1: one in 2017, with Viitorul, the other in 2023, when his team was called Farul, after the association with the historical brand of Constanta. He also has a Cup and a Supercup with the club he founded in 2009

Hagi's test: how talented are the Romanian players?

Over the years, Gică Hagi had a fiery speech about the potential of the Romanian footballer. He constantly maintained that we are by no means lacking in talent and worth, other would be our problems.

“Everything is possible. Don't let anyone tell me that Romania doesn't have children, talent or that we can't become the best!”stated Gică Hagi at one point.

When does the FRF want to officially announce Gică Hagi

With Mircea Lucescu at the end of his term, the expectations are that his successor on the bench of the national team will be Hagi. Behind-the-scenes negotiations are toughthe “King” conditioning the coming to the helm of the “tricolors” on a series of firm measures.

According to Gazeta information, if the parties reach a consensus, Hagi could be announced as a selector on April 15. But this consensus does not seem easy to achieve, considering the conditions set by Gică Hagi in the discussions with the federals. Sources from the Romanian Football Federation explain what the record goalscorer (35, tied with Mutu) wants.

Regarding the staff:

• one of the current seconds, Ionel Gane or Florin Constantinovici, to be replaced by Cătălin Anghel, his trusted man from the Lighthouse;

• his goalkeeping coach was Ștefan Preda, with whom he also collaborated at Farul. This would mean that Leo Toader would leave the senior team.

But Gică Hagi would like his influence and footprint to extend beyond the first representative team. The same sources report that the “King” wants all national teams, from U17 to seniors, to apply the same system, that the U20 and U21 selectors (Adrian Iencsi and Costin Curelea) be changed, and the role of technical director of the Federation, now occupied by Mihai Stoichiță, be taken over by Lucian Burchel.

Burchel is currently the director of the Coaching School within the FRF. The alternative is for him to remain in his position, and for Ilie Dumitrescu to become technical director. It is certain that Hagi wants Mihai Stoichiță out of the scheme.

25 yearshave passed since Gică Hagi became Romania's national team manager (2001), a short term, marked by the tie for the World Cup lost to Slovenia. Since then, Hagi has coached five club teams: Bursaspor, Galatasaray, Poli Timisoara, FCSB, Viitorul/Farul

Tricky group in the Nations League

Hagi would have its first official matches in the fallin the League of Nations, where Romania was assigned to the same group as Poland, Bosnia and Sweden.

• Friday, September 25, 21:45: Poland – Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sweden – ROMANIA
• Monday, September 28, 9:45 p.m.: ROMANIA – Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sweden – Poland
• Friday, October 2, 21:45: Bosnia-Herzegovina – Sweden, Poland – ROMANIA
• Monday, October 5, 21:45: Bosnia-Herzegovina – Poland, ROMANIA – Sweden
• Saturday, November 14, 9:45 p.m.: ROMANIA – Poland, Sweden – Bosnia-Herzegovina
• Tuesday, November 17, 21:45: Bosnia-Herzegovina – ROMANIAPoland – Sweden