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Chindia Târgoviște
Full name	Asociația Fotbal Club Chindia Târgoviște
Nickname(s)	Roș-albaștrii (The Red and Blues); Dâmbovițenii (The Dâmbovița People);
Short name	Chindia
Founded	11 August 2010; 14 years ago
Ground	Eugen Popescu
Capacity	8,400
Owners	Dâmbovița County Council; Târgoviște Municipality
President	Marcel Ghergu
Head coach	Marian Vătavu
League	Liga II
2023–24	Liga II, 9th of 20
Website	https://www.afcchindiatargoviste.ro/
Home colours	Away colours
	Current season

Asociația Fotbal Club Chindia Târgoviște (Romanian pronunciation: [kinˈdi.a tɨrˈɡoviʃte]), commonly known as Chindia Târgoviște or simply Chindia, is a Romanian professional football club based in Târgoviște, Dâmbovița County, that competes in the Liga II.

In 2010, as a result of quarrels between the owner of the original team of the city—last known as FCM Târgoviște—and the Târgoviște Municipality, the latter chose to found a new entity in association with former international Gheorghe Popescu and former referee Ion Crăciunescu.^[2] The club retains some elements from the now-dissolved FCM, such as the red and blue colour scheme and the "Chindia" name and crest used between 1996 and 2003.^[3] Micul Ajax participated for the first time in the Romanian top flight in the 2019–20 season, and the next year equalled FCM's best result in the competition by finishing seventh.

Chindia Târgoviște mainly inherited the local fanbase of the disbanded side, and continued the football history of the city by playing its home matches at the Eugen Popescu Stadium, which was reconstructed and opened in 2023.

History

FCM Târgoviște (1948–2010)

The first football team in the city was founded 1948 and had several names throughout its history, including Metalul Târgoviște (twice), Energia, CS, Oțelul, Chindia and FCM. Despite only spending nine seasons in the top division of Romanian football, the club had a notable generation of players in the late 1970s and early 1980s, which achieved the best ranking in the history of the club—a seventh place at the end of the 1978–79 championship. This "golden generation" included players such as Nicolae Dobrin and Silviu Dumitrescu.^[4]^[5]

After being relegated in 1984, the club did not recover and only reached the first division again in 1996 under the name of CF Chindia. Even if it was probably not as good as Dumitrescu's generation, this squad consisted of local players and earned the nickname Micul Ajax ("the Little Ajax") for its playing style.^[6]^[7]^[8]

After the team faced financial issues and almost withdrew from the Divizia B championship in 2004, businessman Ghiorghi Zotic took over as owner. However, Zotic's relationship with the Târgoviște Municipality and supporters started to strain,^[3] and in March 2010 the Eugen Popescu Stadium rental agreement expired and was not extended. FCM Târgoviște then moved to the Alpan Stadium in Șotânga and started to decline completely; Zotic dissolved the club's senior squad in 2015, keeping only the women's football team. After one year, FCM Târgoviște enrolled in the sixth tier but was dissolved again after two seasons.

Rebirth as Chindia (2010–present)

On 11 August 2010,^[9] after the split between Zotic and the Târgoviște Municipality and supporters, the Municipality, together with Romanian former footballer Gheorghe Popescu and in association with former international referee Ion Crăciunescu, set up a new football club named FC Chindia.^[3] The club was first conceived as a football academy, similar to the model of the Gheorghe Hagi Football Academy within Viitorul Constanța.

After only one season, the club was promoted to the Liga II, but after a seventh place at the end of the 2011–12 edition it relegated back to the Liga III. This relegation resulted in tensions within the club, with Popescu and Crăciunescu choosing to leave the project. Owned by Târgoviște Municipality and Dâmbovița County Council, Chindia returned to the second tier after two seasons, led from the bench by Nicolae Croitoru. After the second promotion to Liga II, Chindia became a more homogeneous team, consisting mostly of local players, as in the previous times of success of its predecessor (late 1970s, early 1980s and mid-1990s). "The Little Ajax" achieved a third place and then a fifth place, before missing out on promotion after a two-legged promotion/relegation play-off against Voluntari at the end of the 2017–18 season.

Finally, Chindia secured its promotion to Liga I at the end of the 2018–19 campaign by winning the second division outright. The promotion meant that the supporters were able to see a team from Târgoviște in the top flight again after 21 years of absence, the last time being when the defunct FCM Târgoviște played in the 1997–98 Divizia A. Chindia finished its inaugural Liga I season on the last place in the table, but was spared from relegation after winning the promotion/relegation play-off against Mioveni. The following year, the club equalled FCM's best result in the league championship by winning the relegation play-outs and coming seventh overall.

In 2023, Chindia returned to the Liga II after four years by finishing the 2022–23 season on the 15th place overall.

Ground

Chindia Tower, the symbol of Târgoviște after which the team is named.

The club plays its home matches on Eugen Popescu Stadium in Târgoviște, which has a capacity of 6,500 seats. Opened in 1982 and originally having a capacity of 12,500 seats, the stadium is situated 200 meters away from the Chindia Tower.

In 2014, the second stand and half of the east end were closed for safety reasons, significantly reducing the arena's capacity. In the spring of 2019, due to team's performances and a potential (and ultimately secured) promotion to the top flight, the Târgoviște Municipality announced the renovation of the stadium for the amount of €16 million. During the renovation work, the team played its home matches on the Ilie Oană and Municipal stadiums, from the nearby cities of Ploiești and Buzău, respectively.^[10]

Support

Chindia Târgoviște has an important group supporters in the city and also in Dâmbovița County, the majority of them being past supporters of FCM Târgoviște. The Chindia ultras faction is known as Cavalerii Cetății ("The Knights of the Fortress").^[11]

Rivalries

Chindia does not have many important rivalries, however, a local one between the old FCM and Flacăra Moreni was born before 1989, when the club from Moreni had the support of the communist regime. Tense matches and even incidents were also noted over time in the matches against Petrolul Ploiești and even if between the two clubs is not a proper rivalry, the supporters are not very friendly with each other.^[11]

An unusual rivalry also appeared between 2010 and 2015, when on the occasion of six matches, Chindia played against the original FCM Târgoviște, the first club of the city, moved to Șotânga at the time. This encounter was similar to derbies such as ASU Politehnica Timișoara vs ACS Poli Timișoara or CS Universitatea Craiova vs FC U Craiova 1948, entities which assert to be successors of the same teams.^[12]

Honours

Domestic

Leagues

Liga II
- Winners (1): 2018–19
Liga III
- Winners (2): 2010–11, 2014–15
- Runners-up (1): 2013–14

Players

First team squad

As of 3 October 2024^[13]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	ROU	Ștefan Mușat (on loan from Farul Constanța)
2	DF	ROU	Marius Martac (3rd captain)
5	DF	ROU	Tiberiu Popa
6	MF	ROU	Iustin Cristea
7	MF	ROU	Rareș Mihai
8	MF	ROU	Iulian Roșu
9	MF	ROU	Bogdan Petre
10	FW	ROU	Daniel Florea (Vice-captain)
11	MF	ROU	Cosmin Atanase
14	FW	MNE	Sergej Grubač
15	DF	ROU	Cornel Dinu (Captain)
16	MF	MDA	Daniel Danu
17	MF	ROU	Răzvan Tache


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
19	FW	CRO	Ante Živković
20	MF	ROU	Alexandru Petre
22	GK	ROU	Mario Contra
23	DF	ROU	Radu Simion
24	DF	ITA	Roberto Romeo
27	MF	ROU	Ionatan Dogănoiu
28	MF	ROU	Iulian Zamfir
30	MF	ROU	Marian Șerban
32	DF	ROU	Mihai Leca
77	MF	CRO	Ivan Pešić
88	DF	ROU	Adrian Ioniță
98	DF	ROU	Alexandru Sabău
99	GK	ROU	Andres Brînzea

Club officials

Board of directors

Role	Name
Owners	Dâmbovița County Council Târgoviște Municipality
President	Marcel Ghergu
Delegate	Dragoș Pătru
Sporting Director	Ciprian Iugulescu
Technical Director	Nicolae Croitoru
Head of Youth Development	Dragoș Pătru
Team Manager	Cristian Bălașa
Marketing and Communication Director	Silviu Posteucă
Press Officer	Florin Manea

Last updated: 25 September 2024
Source:^[14]

Current technical staff

Role	Name
Head coach	Marian Vătavu
Goalkeeping coach	Cezar Lungu
Fitness coach	Cristian Sandu
Club Doctor	Alexandru Catană
Kinetotherapist	Alin Draga
Masseur	Victor Stan
Storeman	Răzvan Toboșaru

Last updated: 25 September 2024
Source:^[15]

League history

Season	Tier	Division	Place	Notes	Cupa României
2024–25	2	Liga II	TBD		Third Round
2023–24	2	Liga II	9th		Group Stage
2022–23	1	Liga I	15th	Relegated	Group Stage
2021–22	1	Liga I	13th	Play-off winner	Quarter-finals
2020–21	1	Liga I	7th		Quarter-finals
2019–20	1	Liga I	14th	Play-off winner	Round of 32
2018–19	2	Liga II	1st (C)	Promoted	Round of 32
2017–18	2	Liga II	3rd		Round of 16

Season	Tier	Division	Place	Notes	Cupa României
2016–17	2	Liga II	5th		Round of 32
2015–16	2	Liga II (Seria II)	3rd		Fourth Round
2014–15	3	Liga III (Seria III)	1st (C)	Promoted	Round of 32
2013–14	3	Liga III (Seria IV)	2nd		Round of 16
2012–13	2	Liga II (Seria I)	12th	Relegated	Fourth Round
2011–12	2	Liga II (Seria II)	7th		Fifth Round
2010–11	3	Liga III (Seria III)	1st (C)	Promoted

Notable former players

The footballers enlisted below have had international cap(s) for their respective countries at junior and/or senior level and/or more than 100 caps for AFC Chindia Târgoviște.

Romania

Burkina Faso

Blaise Yaméogo

Burkina Faso

Nasser Chamed

Lithuania

Modestas Vorobjovas

Moldova

Sweden

Valmir Berisha

Switzerland

Matteo Fedele

Notable former managers

References

^ "AFC Chindia Târgovişte" (in Romanian). Romanian Football Federation. Archived from the original on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
^ "Liga "clonelor"! Cluburile din elita României se confruntă mai mult ca niciodată cu criza de identitate" [League of "clones"! Romania's elite clubs are facing a bigger than ever identity crisis] (in Romanian). Fanatik.ro. 14 July 2021. Archived from the original on 27 January 2024. Retrieved 15 July 2021. Chindia Târgoviște - founded in 2010, is not the successor of the former team from Târgoviște.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Fotbalul din Turnul Chindiei, de la berile cu Dobrin până la "FCSB vs. Steaua" în variantă dâmbovițeană" [Football from Chindia Tower, from the beers drunk with Dobrin to "FCSB vs. Steaua" in a Dâmbovița alternative] (in Romanian). Theplaymaker.ro. 8 October 2018. Archived from the original on 13 July 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
^ "Fotbal sub Turnul Chindiei, o carte eveniment" [Football under the Chindia Tower, an event book]. jurnaldedambovita.ro. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
^ "Săptămâna Poli – Chindia / Târgoviștea lui Dobrin, surclasată de Poli" [Poli – Chindia Week / Dobrin's Târgoviște, overwhelmed by Poli]. druckeria.ro. 20 February 2018. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
^ "Silaghi si Pasarica cred cu tarie in Silviu Dumitrescu" [Silaghi and Pasarica strongly believe in Silviu Dumitrescu]. jurnaldedambovita.ro. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
^ "Creatorul "micului Ajax" a revenit pe banca tehnică a unei echipe românești" [The creator of the "Little Ajax" returned to the technical bench of a Romanian team]. gsp.ro. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
^ "Istoria impresionantă și puțin cunoscută a fotbalului în Târgoviște. Autor: "Este o carte scrisă cu multă dragoste față de oamenii locului"" [The impressive and little known history of the football from Targoviste. Author: "It's a book written with much love for the people of the place"]. adevarul.ro. 25 December 2017. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
^ "ASOCIATIA "FOTBAL CLUB CHINDIA TARGOVISTE"" [ASSOCIATION "FOOTBALL CLUB CHINDIA TARGOVISTE"]. firme.info. Archived from the original on 17 February 2019. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
^ "Chindia nu va mai juca la Mioveni în Liga 1! Echipa lui Viorel Moldovan a închiriat unul dintre cele mai moderne stadioane ale ţării pentru sezonul următor" [Chindia will not play at Mioveni in Liga 1! Viorel Moldovan's team rented, for the next season, one of the most modern stadiums of the country.]. liga2.prosport.ro. 27 June 2019. Archived from the original on 2 July 2019. Retrieved 28 June 2019.
^ ^a ^b ""Lupii Galbeni" au furat steagul "Cavalerilor Cetății"! Filmul unui scenariu spectaculos, care a făcut înconjurul țării" [The "Yellow Wolves" have stolen the "Knights of the Fortress" flag! The film of a spectacular scenario that has made around the country]. sportimpact.ro. 10 March 2019. Archived from the original on 5 March 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
^ "DERBY-UL MARILOR ORGOLII FCM Târgovişte – Chindia Târgovişte. Astăzi, ora 17:00, stadion Academia "Ghiorghi Zotic"" [Derby of the big egos FCM Târgovişte – Chindia Târgovişte. Today, at 17:00, Academia "Ghiorghi Zotic" Stadium]. ziardambovita.ro. 5 September 2013. Archived from the original on 24 August 2020. Retrieved 20 May 2019.
^ "Echipa Seniori" [Senior squad] (in Romanian). Chindia Târgoviște. Archived from the original on 25 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
^ "Organizare AFC CHINDIA TARGOVISTE - Liga Profesionistă de Fotbal". lpf.ro. Archived from the original on 2019-07-12. Retrieved 2019-07-12.
^ "Echipa Seniori | A.F.C. CHINDIA TÂRGOVIȘTE". www.afcchindiatargoviste.ro. Archived from the original on 2019-07-28. Retrieved 2018-01-26.