Article by Ionuţ Coman – Published Tuesday, 06 January 2026, 22:49 / Updated Tuesday, 06 January 2026 22:52
Returning to training with the team on Monday, after only a two-week break, Ianis Zicu believes that it is better for the players to have a shorter winter vacation than the 2-month one, as in the past.
Instead, the technician from Farul Constanța expressed his disagreement both for the current system of the Super League and for the version launched by the president of the Professional Football League, Gino Iorgulescu, with only 12 teams at the start.
Ianis Zicu, about the Superleague format: “Honestly, I would like it again in Romanian football”
“It's better now for the players because it's the matches that give you the excitement and the pleasure to come to the stadium. Back then, that was the championship. There were 18 teams, something I would honestly like to see again in Romanian football. Let there be 18 teams, with a round trip, as happens in all strong championships. I don't know what example we can set now with this halving of points and everything that is going on.
I think it would be much more spectacular in the championship with 18 teams, the best option. I don't think we are a country that could only have 12 teams. We deserve more football and it is not normal to think only of 4-5 teams, which can always stay in the first league. There are other teams from big cities, where stadiums have been built. I don't think it's a good decision and I'm giving my opinion because I watch football and see some things.
If it was good, why didn't they do it in England, to play Manchester United and Manchester City four times? Look, they play with Burnley, Wolverhampton, Fulham, what other teams are there in the championship. The Spanish the same, the Italians the same. We took the example of Belgium, but it's not like that anymore either,” declared Ianis Zicu.
New rules for the PRO License
The 42-year-old coach also spoke about the problems related to obtaining the Pro License, which forced him to be only second on the technical bench of Constanta. Moreover, because he actually fulfilled the role of principal, he also received a fine of 20,000 lei from the Romanian Football Federation. To avoid such situations, Ianis Zicu believes that the rules should be modified in the future.
“It's delicate, because when you play, you don't actually have time to do this. There are things that I think need to be adjusted for former athletes who have performed at international level. They could pass the first two licenses faster, after which the next two, A and PRO, should not be skipped by any former player who wants to become a coach. There are things that you certainly don't know”, explained the former tricolor international.
Strategy with minus degrees
The coach from Constanta also revealed why Farul conducts the training camp in the winter at the modern sports base of the Hagi Academy in Ovidiu, although most of the teams in the Super League have gone abroad, to much warmer areas. “I stayed at home because we have this base in which a lot has been invested and the period is short, just one week. It was also a big expense and it is not justified, taking into account that we will still be playing at the same temperatures, in Romania.
Other teams, UTA, Oțelul, FC Botoşani, have also remained like this. It was our decision to stay, and not just financially. You go to train in a climate, then you come back to play here,” said Ianis Zicu, who revealed that he would not have taken his students to a mountain camp, even if the competitive break had been longer.
“I think that times have changed a lot, there are not many coaches who take their teams to the mountains, but they can be isolated cases. Everything that has happened in recent years, with this development and with the training methodology, leads to training in real game conditions,” said the technician.
