Ilie Datcu

Ilie Datcu
Datcu in 1963
Personal information
Date of birth (1937-07-20)20 July 1937
Place of birth Bucharest, Romania
Date of death 5 October 2026(2026-10-05) (aged 89)
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position Goalkeeper
Youth career
1950–1954 Constructorul București
1955 Metalul Câmpina
1956–1957 Progresul CPCS București
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1958–1961 Dinamo Obor București
1961–1969 Dinamo București 166 (0)
1969–1975 Fenerbahçe 110 (0)
1975–1976 Giresunspor 20 (0)
Total 296 (0)
International career
1963–1967 Romania 13 (0)
Managerial career
1976 Fenerbahçe
1977–1978 Vefa S.K.
1978 Çaykur Rizespor
1978–1979 Türkiyemspor Berlin
1979 Hertha Zehlendorf
1979–1980 Eskişehirspor (assistant)
1981 Göztepe Izmir
1982–1983 Fatih Karagümrük
1984 İstanbulspor
1984–1985 Göztepe Izmir
1985–1986 Denizlispor
1986–1987 Kartalspor
1987–1988 Diyarbakırspor
1988 Bakırköyspor
1988–1990 Türk Telekomspor
1991 Eskişehirspor
1991–1992 Türk Telekomspor
1992–1993 Gaziosmanpaşaspor
1995–1999 Fenerbahçe (goalkeeping coach)
2002–2005 Beşiktaş (goalkeeping coach)
2007 Kütahyaspor
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ilie Datcu (20 July 1937 – 5 October 2026) was a Romanian professional football player and coach who played as a goalkeeper, most notably for Dinamo București and Fenerbahçe. He tended goal for the Romania Olympic football team at the 1964 Summer Olympics, where Romania finished in fifth place.

Club career

Early career

Datcu was born in Bucharest, Romania on 20 July 1937. He began playing football at the junior squads of Constructorul București in 1950, four years later going to Metalul Câmpina and then joining Progresul CPCS București. He started his senior career in 1958 at Divizia B team Dinamo Obor București. During this three-season spell, the club reached the 1960 Cupa României final, where coach Constantin Teașcă used him the entire match in the 2–0 loss to Progresul București.

Dinamo București

Datcu in action during the 1963–64 European Cup match against Motor Jena in Bucharest

Datcu went to play for Dinamo București where he made his Divizia A debut on 20 August 1961 in a 4–3 away loss against Dinamo Pitești. He made a total of 20 league appearances in his first season, helping the team win the title, working with coaches Traian Ionescu, Constantin Teașcă and Nicolae Dumitru. In the following three seasons, Datcu won another three titles. In the first two he was coached by Dumitru and Ionescu who used him 13 games in the first one and 26 in the second. For the last title, Datcu played in 24 matches under the guidance of Angelo Niculescu. During his period spent with The Red Dogs, he also won two Cupa României. In the 1964 final, Ionescu played him for the first 85 minutes, then replaced him with Iuliu Uțu in the 5–3 victory against rivals Steaua București, but in 1968, coach Bazil Marian did not use him in the 3–1 win over Rapid București. Datcu also had some achievements in European competitions with Dinamo; during the 1963–64 European Cup campaign, he kept two clean sheets in a 3–0 aggregate win over East Germany champions Motor Jena, though they were defeated in the next round by Real Madrid. He subsequently appeared in a historical 2–1 victory over Inter Milan in the 1965–66 edition, who were the winners of the previous two editions of the competition. Datcu made his last Divizia A appearance on 25 May 1969 in a 4–3 success against UTA Arad, totaling 166 matches in the competition.

Fenerbahçe

Datcu lifting the Turkish Cup with Fenerbahçe in 1974

In 1969, aged 31, Datcu went to play in Turkey for Fenerbahçe where in his first season he was coached by Traian Ionescu and teamed up with Ion Nunweiller, as the trio had previously worked together at Dinamo. Datcu made his debut in the Turkish league on 28 September in a 0–0 away draw against Altay Izmir. The team claimed the championship title—with Datcu making 29 appearances and conceding only six goals—while he also secured clean sheets during their victorious TSYD Cup run in the 1–0 win over Beşiktaş and the 0–0 draw against Galatasaray. In the following season, he worked with another of his former Dinamo coaches, Constantin Teașcă, and Fenerbahçe finished in second place. In June 1973, he won two trophies under coach Didi, the first being the Prime Minister's Cup following a 5–2 win over Ankaragücü, and the second being the Presidential Cup after a 2–1 victory against Galatasaray. Datcu helped Fenerbahçe get past Argeș Pitești in the first round of the 1973–74 UEFA Cup before they were defeated by Nice in the second round. During the same season, under the guidance of Didi, he helped the team win a treble of trophies. The first trophy won was the TSYD Cup following a 2–2 draw against Galatasaray and a 3–1 win over Beşiktaş. Afterwards, he played in both legs of the 3–1 victory on aggregate over Bursaspor in the Turkish Cup final. He also featured in 21 league matches as Fenerbahçe claimed the league title.

Giresunspor

Datcu ended his career by spending the 1975–76 season at Giresunspor. His last match in the Turkish league took place on 23 May 1976 in a 3–1 away victory against Galatasaray. Datcu accumulated a total of 130 games in the Turkish League and 22 appearances in European competitions.

International career

Datcu (pictured back row, centre) with the Romania Olympic team in Copenhagen, Denmark (1963)

Datcu played six games for Romania, making his debut on 12 May 1963 under coach Silviu Ploeșteanu in a 3–2 friendly victory against East Germany. He played two matches in the Euro 1968 qualifiers. He also played for Romania's Olympic team, being chosen by Ploeșteanu to be part of the 1964 Summer Olympics squad in Tokyo where he made four appearances, including a 3–0 shutout over Yugoslavia to help Romania earn a fifth-place finish.

Managerial career

Datcu started his managerial career at Fenerbahçe in 1976. He mostly coached in Turkey, working at numerous clubs. In the 1982–83 Turkish Second League season, he helped Fatih Karagümrük gain promotion to the first league after an absence of 20 years. He also worked as a goalkeeper coach, first at Fenerbahçe, where he noticed and promoted Rüştü Reçber, then at Beşiktaş, being brought there by his former teammate from Dinamo and the national team, Mircea Lucescu.

Personal life and death

Datcu resided in Bodrum, Turkey. He also held Turkish citizenship under the name İlyas Datça. He died on 5 October 2026, at the age of 89.

Honours

Player

Dinamo Obor București

Dinamo București

Fenerbahçe

Manager

Fatih Karagümrük

Notes

  1. ↑ Including seven appearances for Romania's Olympic team

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Ilie Datcu". European Football. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  2. 1 2 "Fenerbahçe tarihine damga vuran 4 kaleci". Fenerbahçe (in Turkish). 29 July 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Ilie Datcu Biography and Olympic Results | Olympics at Sports-Reference.com". Archived from the original on 10 October 2012. Retrieved 2 December 2008.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Românul Ilie Datcu sau turcul Ilyas Datca?" [The Romanian Ilie Datcu or the Turk Ilyas Datca?] (in Romanian). WeLoveSport.ro. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Ilie Datcu at RomanianSoccer.ro (in Romanian)
  6. 1 2 "Romanian Cup – Season 1959–1960". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Romania National Champions". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Ilie Datcu at National-Football-Teams.com
  9. ↑ "Asta e prima finala Steaua - Dinamo din istorie! Omul care i-a inventat pe Lucescu si Dinu a umilit-o pe Steaua in fata a 70.000 de fani!" [This is the first Steaua - Dinamo final in history! The man who invented Lucescu and Dinu humiliated Steaua in front of 70,000 fans!] (in Romanian). Sport.ro. 23 May 2011. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
    "Povestea unei fabuloase finale de Cupă" [The story of a fabulous cup final] (in Romanian). Welovesport.ro. 16 June 2023. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
    "Romanian Cup – Season 1963–1964". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
    "Romanian Cup – Season 1968–1969". RomanianSoccer. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  10. ↑ "Ilie Datcu - Champions League 1963/1964". WorldFootball. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  11. ↑ "1 decembrie 1965, Ziua națională a "câinilor": cea în care au învins dubla campioană a Europei și a lumii" [December 1, 1965, the national day of the "dogs": the one in which they defeated the double champion of Europe and the world] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "Ilie Datcu profile". Arsiv.mackolik.com. 20 July 1937. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
  13. 1 2 3 4 "Ilie Datcu, primul bașkan român în fotbal" [Ilie Datcu, the first Romanian baskan in football] (in Romanian). Sptfm.ro. 2 December 2020. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  14. 1 2 "Răzvane, ia taurul de coarne!" [Răzvan, take the bull by the horns!] (in Romanian). Libertatea.ro. 5 June 2009. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  15. ↑ "Altay Izmir 0–0 Fenerbahçe". Arsiv.mackolik.com. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
  16. ↑ "Fenerbahçe Istanbul. Kader Champions League 1970/1971". Datencenter.dfb.de. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
  17. ↑ "Fenerbahçe 5–2 Ankaragücü". Arsiv.mackolik.com. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
    "Galatasaray 1–2 Fenerbahçe". Arsiv.mackolik.com. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
  18. ↑ "Ilie Datcu - UEFA Cup 1973/1974". WorldFootball. Retrieved 12 October 2026.
    "FC Argeș – Fenerbahce 1-1 (Cupa UEFA – 3 octombrie 1973)" [FC Argeș – Fenerbahce 1-1 (UEFA Cup– 3 October 1973)] (in Romanian). Tikitaka.ro. 3 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2026.
  19. 1 2 3 4 "38 yıl sonra gelen kupa finali" [A cup final after 38 years] (in Turkish). Tff.org. Retrieved 12 October 2026.
  20. ↑ "Galatasaray 1–3 Giresunspor". Arsiv.mackolik.com. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
  21. ↑ "Romania – East Germany 3:2". European Football. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  22. ↑ Ilie Datcu at National-Football-Teams.com
    "Cum a fost ultima participare a României la Olimpiadă, în 1964, când "tricolorii" au pierdut dramatic sfertul cu Ungaria" [How was Romania's last participation in the Olympics, in 1964, when "The Tricolors" dramatically lost the quarter to Hungary] (in Romanian). Theplaymaker.ro. 27 June 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
    "Ilie Datcu - Olympic Games 1964". WorldFootball. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  23. ↑ "1964 Summer Olympics: Consolation Final • Match 35 | 22 Oct 1964". www.fifa.com. Retrieved 12 October 2026.
  24. 1 2 "lie Datcu Röportajı". FenerbahceTarihi.org (in Turkish). 16 December 2009. Retrieved 18 November 2018.
  25. 1 2 "Ilie Datcu : "Steaua e modestă rău, n-are şanse"" [Ilie Datcu: "Steaua is modest, unfortunately, they have no chance"] (in Romanian). Adevarul.ro. 5 November 2009. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
  26. 1 2 "Ilie Datcu - Coach Details". Turkish Football Federation. Retrieved 14 September 2018.
  27. 1 2 Aytuna, Fethi (26 November 2020). "Karagümrük: Süper Lig'in yeni İstanbullusu". İST Dergi (in Turkish). Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  28. ↑ "Fenerbahçe's legendary goalkeeper Ilie Datcu has passed away". Fanatik.com. 5 October 2026. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
    "Doliu la Dinamo! A murit fostul portar Ilie Datcu" [Mourning at Dinamo! Former goalkeeper Ilie Datcu has died] (in Romanian). Prosport.ro. 5 October 2026. Retrieved 6 October 2026.
    "Fostul mare portar al lui Dinamo a murit la vârsta de 89 de ani, la fix 26 de ani de la dispariția lui Cătălin Hîldan" [The legendary former Dinamo goalkeeper has died at the age of 89, exactly 26 years after the passing of Cătălin Hîldan] (in Romanian). Gsp.ro. 5 October 2026. Retrieved 6 October 2026.