Ștefan Radu facts for kids
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Radu captaining Lazio in 2015
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ștefan Daniel Radu | ||
| Date of birth | 22 October 1986 | ||
| Place of birth | Bucharest, Romania | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1999–2004 | Dinamo București | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2004–2005 | Dinamo II București | 23 | (1) |
| 2005–2008 | Dinamo București | 61 | (1) |
| 2008 | → Lazio (loan) | 11 | (0) |
| 2008–2023 | Lazio | 338 | (5) |
| Total | 433 | (7) | |
| International career | |||
| 2003 | Romania U17 | 1 | (0) |
| 2005 | Romania U19 | 3 | (0) |
| 2006–2008 | Romania U21 | 13 | (1) |
| 2006–2013 | Romania | 13 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Ștefan Daniel Radu is a former professional footballer from Romania. He was born on October 22, 1986. Ștefan played as a defender, often as a left-back or a centre-back.
He started his career in Romania with Dinamo București. There, he won three national awards, including a league title. In 2008, Radu moved to Lazio in Italy, first on loan. He stayed with Lazio for the rest of his career. He even became the team captain. With Lazio, he won the Coppa Italia and the Supercoppa Italiana three times each.
In 2021, Ștefan Radu became the player with the most appearances for Lazio in all competitions. He retired from football in 2023. Radu also played for the Romanian national team. He made his debut in 2006 and played 13 games before retiring from international football in 2013.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting at Dinamo București
Ștefan Radu was born in Bucharest, Romania. He grew up in the Colentina neighborhood. He made his first team debut for Dinamo București on April 27, 2005. This was in a league match where Dinamo won 3–0.
During the 2006–07 Liga I season, Radu became a regular player. This happened because the team had a shortage of defenders. He played alongside Cosmin Moți in the central defense. That season, Dinamo București won the Liga I trophy. They also reached the round of 16 in the 2006–07 UEFA Cup.
Moving to Lazio
In January 2008, Radu joined Lazio, a team in Italy's top league, Serie A. He first joined on a loan deal. Soon after joining, he played his first game for Lazio in a Coppa Italia match. He quickly became an important player for the team. He played in all the matches he was available for.
At the end of that season, Lazio signed Radu permanently. He became a key player for Lazio. He even captained the team during the 2011–12 season.
Winning Trophies with Lazio
Ștefan Radu won many trophies with Lazio. In the 2012–13 season, Lazio won the Coppa Italia. They beat their rivals Roma in the final. In 2017, Lazio won the Supercoppa Italiana. They defeated Juventus in that match.
On May 15, 2019, Lazio won the 2018–19 Coppa Italia again, beating Atalanta. Later that year, on December 22, 2019, Lazio beat Juventus once more. This win secured another 2019 Supercoppa Italiana trophy for the team. Ștefan Radu retired from football at the end of the 2022–23 season.
International Career
Playing for Romania
Ștefan Radu played 13 games for the Romanian national team. His first game was on November 15, 2006. This was a friendly match against Spain, which Romania won 1–0.
He played in two successful qualifying games for UEFA Euro 2008. He was part of the team that went to the main tournament, but he did not play in any matches there. Radu played his last game for the national team on March 22, 2013. This was a 2–2 draw against Hungary.
Retirement from International Football
Radu decided to stop playing for the national team in April 2013. He was only 26 years old at the time. He mentioned that he had a difficult relationship with the national football federation. Even though he continued to be a top Romanian player abroad, he never changed his decision to retire from international football.
On March 25, 2008, the President of Romania, Traian Băsescu, honored Ștefan Radu. He received "The Medal 'The Sportive Merit'" for Romania's successful Euro 2008 qualifying campaign.
Honours
Dinamo București
- Liga I: 2006–07
- Cupa României: 2004–05
- Supercupa României: 2005
Lazio
- Coppa Italia: 2008–09, 2012–13, 2018–19
- Supercoppa Italiana: 2009, 2017, 2019
Individual
- Gazeta Sporturilor Romanian Footballer of the Year third place: 2017 (shared with Florin Niță)
Records
- Lazio all-time appearance holder: 427
- Lazio all-time Serie A appearance holder: 349
See also
In Spanish: Ștefan Radu para niños
