Vlad Chiricheș facts for kids
Chiricheș with Romania in 2014
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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Vlad Iulian Chiricheș | ||
| Date of birth | 14 November 1989 | ||
| Place of birth | Bacău, Romania | ||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Defender, defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
|
Current team
|
FCSB | ||
| Number | 21 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2004 | LPS Bacău | ||
| 2004–2007 | Ardealul Cluj | ||
| 2007–2008 | Benfica | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2008–2010 | Internațional Curtea de Argeș | 41 | (1) |
| 2010–2011 | Pandurii Târgu Jiu | 39 | (0) |
| 2012–2013 | Steaua București | 42 | (1) |
| 2013–2015 | Tottenham Hotspur | 27 | (1) |
| 2015–2020 | Napoli | 32 | (3) |
| 2019–2020 | → Sassuolo (loan) | 9 | (0) |
| 2020–2022 | Sassuolo | 53 | (2) |
| 2022–2023 | Cremonese | 16 | (0) |
| 2023– | FCSB | 36 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2009–2010 | Romania U21 | 4 | (0) |
| 2011– | Romania | 77 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 12 July 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 June 2025 |
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Vlad Iulian Chiricheș (born 14 November 1989) is a Romanian professional footballer. He plays as a defender for the Liga I club FCSB. He also plays for the Romania national team. Vlad is mainly a central defender. He can also play as a right-back or a defensive midfielder.
Vlad started his senior football career in Romania. He played for clubs like Internațional Curtea de Argeș, Pandurii Târgu Jiu, and Steaua București. He helped Steaua București win a Liga I title and a Supercupa României. In 2013, he moved to Tottenham Hotspur in England. This was a record transfer for a Romanian player at the time.
After two years in the Premier League, Vlad moved to Italy. He played for Serie A clubs like Napoli, Sassuolo, and Cremonese. He spent eight seasons playing in Italy. In 2023, he returned to Romania and rejoined FCSB.
Vlad has played for the Romanian national team since September 2011. He has played over 70 matches for his country. He also represented Romania in the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting His Journey
Vlad Chiricheș began playing football in his hometown. He started as a midfielder at LPS Bacău. Later, he even played as a striker when he moved to Ardealul Cluj. At Ardealul Cluj, he played alongside future Romanian national players. These included Mihai Răduț and Alexandru Maxim. In 2007, Vlad moved to Portugal to play for Benfica.
After a year in Lisbon, Vlad came back to Romania. He joined a lower league club called Internațional Curtea de Argeș. He helped them get promoted to the top league, Liga I, in 2009. In 2010, Internațional was closed down. Vlad then moved to Pandurii Târgu Jiu with many of his teammates. He was almost going to sign for FCSB, but their coach did not agree.
Time at Steaua București
After one season with Pandurii Târgu Jiu, Vlad finally joined Steaua București. The transfer cost was about €700,000. In August 2013, FCSB paid more money to fully own his contract. The total transfer fee became €1.2 million.
On 25 October 2012, he scored an amazing overhead kick goal. This happened in a 2–0 win against Molde in the Europa League. This goal helped Steaua take control of their group. On 21 February 2013, Vlad scored a long-range goal against Ajax. This helped Steaua come back from being two goals down. They won the game in a penalty shootout. This led them to play against 2012 Champions League winners Chelsea. He scored again against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. His goal made the score 1–1 in the second leg.
Playing for Tottenham Hotspur
On 30 August 2013, the English team Tottenham Hotspur signed Vlad. They paid €9.5 million (£8.5 million) for him. This made him the most expensive Romanian player transfer at that time. On 24 September, he played his first game for Tottenham. It was a 4–0 win against Aston Villa in the League Cup. He also played his first Premier League game against Aston Villa. Fans voted him the best player in that match. On 4 December that year, Vlad scored his first goal for Tottenham. It was a goal from outside the penalty box in a 2–1 win over Fulham.
Towards the end of 2015, an Italian team, Roma, wanted to loan Vlad. Tottenham rejected their offer. On 9 May 2015, he was sent off the field. This happened after he received two yellow cards. His team lost 0–3 to Stoke City.
Moving to Napoli
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On 30 July 2015, the Italian club Napoli signed Vlad. He signed a four-year contract. The transfer fee was £4.5 million. He played his first Serie A game for Napoli on 23 August. They lost 1–2 at home to Sassuolo.
On 10 September 2018, Vlad got a serious knee injury. This injury kept him out of most of the season.
Time at Sassuolo
On 2 September 2019, Vlad moved to another Serie A club, Sassuolo. He joined them on a one-season loan. Sassuolo had to buy him permanently after the loan. In the summer of 2020, Sassuolo paid €11 million to Napoli. This made his move to Sassuolo permanent.
Playing for Cremonese
On 8 July 2022, Vlad decided to stay in Italy. He signed a one-year contract with Cremonese. They also played in Serie A.
Coming Back to FCSB
FCSB announced that Vlad Chiricheș was returning to the club on 25 July 2023. This was about ten years after he left for Tottenham Hotspur. He played his first game back four days later. It was a 2–0 away win against Oțelul Galați. Vlad played only six more matches after that. Three of these were in the Europa Conference League qualifiers. He then got a long-term injury. This injury kept him from playing until March 2024.
International Career
On 2 September 2011, Vlad Chiricheș played his first game for the Romanian national team. It was a 2–0 away win against Luxembourg. This game was part of the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying. On 14 August 2013, he was captain for the first time. This was in a 1–1 friendly match against Slovakia. His first official game as captain was on 6 September that year. Romania won 3–0 against Hungary in a World Cup qualifier.
On 5 October 2017, Vlad played his 50th game for the national team. Romania won 3–1 at home against Kazakhstan.
Honours
FCSB
- Liga I: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2023–24, 2024–25
- Supercupa României: 2013, 2024, 2025
Tottenham Hotspur
- League Cup runner-up: 2014–15
Individual Awards
- Gazeta Sporturilor Romanian Footballer of the Year: 2013; runner-up: 2012
Images for kids
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Chiricheș in action against Austria in June 2012.
See also
In Spanish: Vlad Chiricheș para niños
