9 October: Popescu, Barça's Romanian captain
Gheorghe Popescu
«Baciul»
- FC Universitatea Craiova 1984-1990 · 22 goals
- CSA Steaua Fútbol 1988 · 1 goals
- PSV Eindhoven 1990-1994 · 24 goals
- Tottenham Hotspur Football Club 1994-1995 · 3 goals
- Fútbol Club Barcelona 1995-1997 · 9 goals
- Galatasaray Spor Kulübü 1997-2001 · 6 goals
- U.S. Lecce 2001-2002 · 3 goals
- FC Dinamo de Bucarest 2002-2003
- Hannover 96 2002-2003 · 1 goals
- Hannover 96 2003 · 1 goals
Craiova, Eindhoven and London
He came through at Universitatea Craiova and in 1990 moved abroad: first to Bobby Robson's PSV, then to Tottenham.
At the 1994 World Cup in the United States he was one of the pillars of Hagi's Romania, who knocked out Argentina in the last sixteen and went out on penalties to Sweden in the quarter-finals.
Captain at the Camp Nou
In 1995 Cruyff's Barcelona signed him, and the following year, with Bobby Robson again in charge, he wore the armband in a side with Ronaldo, Figo, Guardiola and Luis Enrique. In 1997 he lifted the Cup Winners' Cup, won in Rotterdam against PSG with a Ronaldo penalty, and the Copa del Rey.
Copenhagen, 17 May 2000
At Fatih Terim's Galatasaray, alongside his compatriot Hagi, he had his big night. The 2000 UEFA Cup final in Copenhagen against Arsenal ended 0-0 and went to penalties. Popescu took the last one and scored it: the first European trophy in the history of Turkish football.
A few months later Galatasaray also won the UEFA Super Cup in Monaco, against Real Madrid, with a golden goal.
🔴⚪ Sporting Gijón players born this day
They played for Sporting Gijón and were born on this same day. There is only their data here: we would rather name them than leave them out, and rather give the bare facts than invent a story.
Juanjo González 🔴⚪
- Unión Deportivo Gijón Industrial 1993-1994
- Real Sporting de Gijón 1995-2003
- Club Deportivo Linares 2003-2004
David Cano 🔴⚪
- Real Sporting de Gijón
Another 50 internationally known footballers were born on this day. We do not list them for the sake of it: only those with a story to tell make it here.
📅 The almanac: pick any date
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Football almanac · Elopi23
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September14 ★
- 11 September: Ruud Gullit
- 1111 September: Franz Beckenbauer
- 1818 September: Ronaldo
- 2020 September: Henrik Larsson
- 2121 September: Sándor Kocsis
- 2222 September: Thiago Silva
- 2323 September: Quini
- 2424 September: Marco Tardelli
- 2525 September: Karl-Heinz Rummenigge
- 2626 September: Michael Ballack
- 2727 September: Francesco Totti
- 2828 September: Javi Poves
- 2929 September: Andriy Shevchenko
- 3030 September: Frank Rijkaard
October9 ★
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