Overview
- Romania’s University Hospital in Bucharest and the national federation confirmed his death Tuesday at age 80.
- His casket lay in state Wednesday at Bucharest’s National Arena, with further rites through Friday and a burial at Bellu Cemetery with military honors.
- Doctors had treated him since March 29 for severe heart rhythm disturbances, and reports say he suffered a heart attack on Good Friday before a planned discharge.
- He had stepped down after Romania’s 0–1 World Cup play-off loss to Turkey, a match that made him the oldest national team coach on record.
- FIFA’s Gianni Infantino and UEFA’s Aleksander Čeferin hailed him as a giant of the game, noting a career that included the 2009 UEFA Cup with Shakhtar Donetsk and league titles in Turkey and Ukraine.