*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 19 September 2017 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 September 2017
Doru Nicolae (born 22 March 1952) is a Romanian former professional footballer who played as a forward.[1] He was one of few Romanian footballers who was transferred in a foreign country during the communist regime.[2] Nicolae played seven games at international level for Romania.[1]
In 1976 Nicolae signed with Argeș Pitești where he started playing in European competitions, firstly in the 1978–79 UEFA Cup edition when he helped the team eliminate Panathinaikos in the first round, scoring a goal in the 5–1 aggregate victory.[1][2][7] In the following round they met Valencia led by Mario Kempes, earning a 2–1 win in the first leg, however they lost the second one with 5–2, thus the campaign ending.[1][7][8] In the same season he formed a successful offensive trio with Nicolae Dobrin and Marin Radu, scoring four goals in the 33 appearances given to him by coach Florin Halagian, including one goal in the final game of the season against Dinamo București which ended with a 4–3 victory that helped Argeș win the title.[1][2][3][6][9] In the following season he scored two goals in the 3–2 victory on aggregate against AEK Athens in the first round of the 1979–80 European Cup, the team being eliminated in the following one by title holders and eventual winners, Nottingham Forest.[1][2][10] Also in the same season he scored a personal record of 11 goals in first league football.[1][3][4][5]
Panathinaikos
In 1980, Nicolae was allowed by the communist regime to transfer outside the country, in Greece at Panathinaikos, a club which wanted him after seeing him play in European competitions.[1][2][3][6] He spent two seasons with The Greens, scoring nine goals in 57 Alpha Ethniki appearances, earning a runner-up position in the 1981–82 edition and winning the 1981–82 Greek Cup where he was used by coach Ștefan Kovács all the minutes in the 1–0 victory over AEL from the final.[1][2][3][6][11] He also played in a 4–2 home victory over Juventus in the first round of the 1980–81 UEFA Cup, however they did not manage to qualify further as the first leg was lost with 4–0.[1][6][12]
Late career
After the spell in Greece, Nicolae returned to Romania at Gloria Bistrița in Divizia B.[1][6][4] After half of year he went back to Divizia A football at Bihor Oradea but he returned to Bistrița after one year where for several seasons he would fight unsuccessfully for promotion to the first league.[1][6][4] In 1987 he had a short spell at Universitatea Craiova where on 10 May he made his last Divizia A appearance in a 1–0 home win over Universitatea Cluj, having a total of 156 matches with 26 goals scored in the competition.[1][3][6][4] He ended his career in 1988 after another spell at Gloria Bistrița in the second league.[1][2]
International career
Doru Nicolae played seven matches at international level for Romania, making his debut under coach Ștefan Kovács on 14 May 1978 in a friendly which ended with a 1–0 loss in front of Soviet Union.[13][14] He played in a victory with Yugoslavia and a draw with Cyprus at the Euro 1980 qualifiers.[13] Nicolae made his last appearance for the national team on 6 June 1980 in a friendly with Belgium that ended with a 2–1 loss.[13]
