Dumitru Moraru, a 70-year-old member of the Scouting Department at CS Dinamo, reflects on the team’s ongoing struggles in Liga 2. The club, associated with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, relies heavily on junior players and has not secured any points in its first three matches of the league.
After being granted a last-minute spot in Liga 2 following their loss in the promotion play-off against Șelimbăr in mid-May, the team, under Ionuț Chirilă’s guidance, has faced significant challenges in the second division. The roster was hastily assembled, and the adjustment to Liga 2 has been harsh for the young players contracted with the club.
CS Dinamo aims to nurture new talent and provide promising options for their first league counterparts, but the journey appears to be a tough and prolonged one. Players from their own academy are confronting the stringent demands of the second league, complicating efforts to prevent another relegation.
Moraru on the Team’s Objectives
Dumitru Moraru, a veteran present with Chirilă’s squad, which featured an average age of just 19 in their opening match, provided insights on the current situation of the public club.
“Ionuț Lupescu has emphasized the need to develop players and, ideally, sell some of them. However, they were not adequately prepared. They lost narrowly (0-1 to Metalul Buzău last Saturday), and they nearly equalized near the end,” he noted.
The team has since recruited some players aged 23 to 24. However, during the initial matches, they fielded two 16-year-olds and four 17-year-olds, as Chirilă had to work with what he found at the Youth Center.
“The quality of play in Liga 2 is not high; some matches are hardly watchable, but they certainly cannot compete with seasoned teams with experienced players. Against Afumați, they played well for a half, even leading at one point (final score 1-3). But they faltered in the second half; they are just kids,” Moraru explained.
With rival teams comprising assembled squads with players who have played together for years, CS Dinamo’s goal is to develop talent and avoid relegation, a daunting task for Chirilă, who was brought in specifically to meet this challenge.
Concerns Over Youth Football Academies
“In my view, we are not faring well… Everyone talks about academies, but only a few clubs are doing well—Farul, Craiova, and FCSB, as well as Cluj. The rest…”
He criticized many academies as money-making ventures. “Parents pay fees, but many facilities lack proper amenities. Parents cover equipment, transport, and camps, leading to a situation where selection is not done effectively. They just want to enroll as many kids as possible to collect fees. Once parents pay, they pressure for their child to play, regardless of skill,” he added, lamenting that most local academies do not conduct selections as rigorously as in the past.
After being relegated last season, CS Dinamo’s return to Liga 2 has been anything but smooth. Currently, the team, led by Ionuț Chirilă, sits at the bottom of the standings in 22nd place with a goal difference of -6.
