Everyone he called turned him down. Mircea Lucescu, incredible revelations, a few days before he died
Mircea Lucescu left us on Tuesday, even though towards the end of March he was still Romania's national team coach. The international journalist Emanuel Roșu conducted the last interview with the great coach, published in the British newspaper The Guardian. The discussion took place before the match with Turkey, when Il Luce knew what medical problems he had, but asked the interlocutor not to specify them in the interview. Mircea Lucescu confessed that he was always looking for a coach to hand over the team, calling many of them personally. He faced refusal after refusal, so that he was forced to continue on the bench, even though he was suffering from leukaemia, saying that if he had left he would have been considered a coward.
Mircea Lucescu: July 29, 1945 – April 7, 2026. Photo AFP
That's how he ended up in the situation where he was hurt in the training camp before the match against Slovakia, he was taken to the hospital, where he never came out alive. Here are the most important passages from the interview with Mircea Lucescu, regarding the situation on the national team bench.
“In 2024, I was expecting someone to come and take over the team. Coaches with results. But there was a hiatus. Normally, any coach should want to be here. I was expecting guys younger than me to take over the team, take it forward, force a result.
He felt indebted to Romanian football
When there were no options, they called me (FRF no) and asked me to take over the team. They said there was no other alternative. (…) I felt it was my duty to take over the team. It was not only a major responsibility, it was my duty for everything that Romanian football offered me. I was in debt. It was never about the money or another medal for me. I have enough trophies over the years. I just wanted to help and I hoped to help by changing the way Romanian football works on a mental level. Because, let's not forget: we had extraordinary results when we played our style of football”.
Mircea Lucescu revealed that he personally called coaches to replace him
Mircea Lucescu was decided to stop after the Nations League matches, from 2024, but no one wanted to harness up and take over the national team for the World Cup preliminaries. He even got to personally call coaches to take his place, but in vain. Then, after finding out he was sick, Il luce had the same problem. No one wanted to “spoil” their name, especially since the tie with Turkey was coming up, a team considered much stronger than ours.
I have a great exchange with my players. He constantly asks me how I feel. Thank you for staying (smiles).
“The only thing I couldn't have done in the last few months would have been to abandon this team. But that doesn't mean I wasn't open to someone else coming in if the Federation found a replacement. I initiated these talks after the Nations League campaign. We wanted to find someone to ensure continuity. I didn't even ask about money or anything. I said: 'I'll take over for a while, but someone has to come after that.' We are talking about the future of this national team.
“For 80 years I had an extraordinary life. Then, from December, what happened”
Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan. But resignation would have been the last option for me. I would only have left if we had found a replacement. I spoke to the coaches myself, I asked them to think about it. I didn't know what my medical situation was. But I'm not a coward and I won't leave this team like a coward. (…)
When the doctors told me I could continue training, I focused on what I had to do for Romania. I spoke to the Federation. I'm not in the best shape so I would have given up if there was another option. But I insist, I cannot leave like a coward. We have to believe in our chance, as I do.”
You can find Mircea Lucescu's full statements here.
