Mircea Lucescu, interview-event in Italy » From Ceaușescu to the house destroyed by the earthquake and the gift from Pele

“- What kind of player was Mircea Lucescu?
– We were a winger with exceptional crosses, thanks to which Dudu Georgescu won the “Golden Ice”. I played for 10 years at Dinamo Bucharest, I reached the national team, and in 1970 I was Romania's captain against Pelé's Brazil and I was even invited to play for Fluminense. They had noticed me at a tournament at the Maracana: Romania, Flamengo, Vasco da Gama and Independiente. I was named the best player, and as a prize they gave me a car radio. Then, in 1977, there was an earthquake in Bucharest…

– And what happened?
– My house was destroyed, I had to run away. At Hunedoara they helped me, and I helped them: I became a player-coach. I did not conform to the generally accepted football, but developed my own philosophy. First: education at all levels. Then discipline, but not imposed, but based on respect, and training: I took the boys to museums, to the theater, to factories, to understand the world. Finally, different tactics and working methods. I played ultra-offensively: possession of the ball, penetrations, creating spaces, pressing, tactical foul when needed – what is done today, I was doing 50 years ago.

Mircea Lucescu's interview in Gazzetta dello Sport on December 24, 2025

Lucescu, about football in Romania under communism

– How was football during Ceaușescu's time?
– I couldn't win the championship with Dinamo, because his son was at Steaua, but my position was delicate, because I was also leading the national team. And there I acted in my own way: I immediately included 3-4 young players from provincial clubs. Everyone was against me, so I organized a friendly match: my team against a selection of the best players from Bucharest, made up of journalists. We beat them 3-1. Then they understood that my ideas work. To prepare for the European Championship qualifiers in 1984, we took the boys to South America: we played against Argentina, Chile, Peru, and in El Salvador there was a revolution and we had to flee at night… But that helped us a lot, we won the qualifying group, beating even the world champions Italy. In 1986 I was dismissed, and three years later Ceaușescu “fell” and I won the championship and the cup. Do you know where I was when I heard the news?

– Where?
– In Cagliari, guest of their president Anconetani for the match Italy – Argentina. In the end I accepted his courtship, I liked him. But working with him was difficult, he always wanted to be the main character. You remember how he used to throw salt on the field, right? I have excellent memories of him – a cheerful man, a fervent Catholic, who never missed a mass in the “Piazza dei Miracoli”, generous: at every training camp in Montecatini, he gave gifts to the players. But he also wanted to make money: he sold me one player a month, and in the end he showed me the door too. I arrived in Brescia by chance. Their president at the time, Corioni, was looking for me, but Standard Liège and Porto also wanted me. So, together with my wife and son, I wrote three tickets and drew lots. At the time of shooting, however, one was missing, strangely. I found it two days later, stuck under a shoe: Brescia. A sign of destiny.

– Corioni, another one of the legendary presidents.
– A man with exceptional intuition. Italy lived on colonies: the Dutch in Milan, the Germans in Inter, the Uruguayans in Cagliari… that's how we convinced him to make a Romanian Brescia. I took Hagi, who was not happy at Real: he trusted me, he made a smart choice, two years later he played an extraordinary World Championship and Cruyff called him to Barca. The good thing about Corioni was that, with him, we could promote young players, he was happy, because then he sold them. I brought Pirlo on at 16 in the 2-1 win against Ipswich in the Anglo-Italian tournament, he lost a ball and we drew 2-2, and then I had to argue with Luzardi who accused me of bringing the kid on…

– Let's continue with Moratti.
– A true gentleman, he tried to convince me to stay, but at that Inter we had 10 players with contracts about to expire, and he had announced that the following year he would bring Lippi, which created problems for me. But Moratti is the soul of the club, his love is felt, he is an example of a golden period when Italian football belonged to the big families. Today it is no longer like that: funds, consortia, foreigners… yes, it is played, there is a market, but football from entertainment has turned into an event. Baggio, Djorkaeff, Recoba, Ronaldo, Zamorano… Moratti is in love with strikers. If they had also brought in some strong defenders, who knows how much that Inter would have won.

I see Neymar and Casemiro – exceptional, but I'm told it's impossible to get them. Okay, what about the others? This is how Douglas Costa, Teixeira, Fernandinho arrived. We created a system where Shakhtar earned a lot, and if they sold someone, they already had a replacement ready. Akhmetov was not doing this for himself, he was investing everything in the team. He built the most beautiful stadium in Europe, we were beating the giants, we were young, strong and playing magnificently.

We won the UEFA Cup and every year we reached roughly the quarter-finals of the Champions League. Do you know how difficult it is to impose an Eastern European team at such a level? If it wasn't for the war in Donbas, maybe one day we would have won the Champions League. Akhmetov is a wonderful president because he wants to learn. After the matches we would go to dinner or karaoke, because he likes to sing, we would talk about football and life

– Mircea Lucescu, about the Shakhtior period

The unexpected triumph with Dynamo Kyiv

A few years later, Lucescu took over the great rival Dinamo Kiev: “They called me and I thought they wanted a friendly advice. Instead, they proposed to me to take over the team, which had lost the title by 23 points. I accepted and, with the same players, we won it with 11 points ahead”, continued the Romanian coach.

“One day they told me that 30 million entered the accounts and asked me who to buy. I answered: nobody, you better make a new fitness room and get minibuses for juniors. These are the purchases that remain.” Lucescu also said.

The priceless memory of Pelé

Lucescu still keeps a precious memory from his meeting with Pele. In 1970, he traded jerseys with the great player at the end of a match. “I still keep it. Dirty with mud, I never washed it. I framed it, now it's in a museum,” concluded Lucescu.