his “pearl” scored with his head

After Marian Aioani, a former student of Hagi's, made an unbelievable mistake on the free-kick, Louis Munteanu managed to score with a header from the box after a very good clearance. The DC United player was not a starter, but came off the bench in place of Florinel Coman at halftime.

Louis Munteanu is the first scorer in the new Hagi era

The Romanian national team recovered a ball in the opposing half, thanks to Mihăilă's pressing. The ball reached Screciu, the football player from Craiova University, and he crossed very well, behind the defense of the hosts. Louis Munteanu left, escaped the marking very well and attacked the ball. He headed the ball to the far corner and Mamardashvili failed to intervene. The hosts called for offside, but Louis Munteanu went from the regulation position.

Louis Munteanu is a product of the Hagi Academy and made his senior debut for Farul in 2019. He was then transferred to Fiorentina, and after an unsuccessful experience in Italy he returned to Farul for two seasons on loan. He was later acquired by CFR Cluj, played two seasons and was also the top scorer of the championship in the 2024-2025 season. In the winter he made the move to MLS at DC United.

• Gică Hagi is the coach under whom Louis Munteanu played the most matches: 84. He scored 25 goals and provided 11 goals. Almost half of the matches in his entire career are under the command of Gică Hagi.

• Louis Munteanu had not played for the national team since November 2025 when he played 27 minutes in Romania's 7-1 win over San Marino. He has 5 matches under the “tricolor” and is on his third goal.