Alexandru Spiridon (born 20 July 1960) is a former professional footballer and current football manager from Moldova. Spiridon played as a midfielder during his football career, winning the Moldovan Footballer of the Year award in 1992. He made 16 appearances for the national team, scoring one goal. He worked as the assistant manager at Russian club Zenit Saint Petersburg, joining the club in 2016 with manager Mircea Lucescu.
 Spiridon in 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 20 July 1960 | ||
| Place of birth | Edineț, Moldavian SSR, Soviet Union | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1976–1981 | Nistru Chișinău | 54 | (2) |
| 1982 | SKA Kiev | 34 | (3) |
| 1983 | Zorya Voroshylovhrad | 4 | (0) |
| 1983–1986 | Nistru Chișinău | 84 | (7) |
| 1987–1990 | Zaria Bălți | 133 | (48) |
| 1991 | Zimbru Chișinău | 32 | (5) |
| 1992–1996 | Zimbru Chișinău | 85 | (42) |
| 1996–1997 | Tiligul Tiraspol | 7 | (6) |
| International career | |||
| 1992–1995 | Moldova | 16 | (2) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1994–1996 | Zimbru Chișinău | ||
| 1994–2000 | Moldova (assistant) | ||
| 1997–1999 | Tiligul Tiraspol | ||
| 2000–2001 | Moldova U21 | ||
| 2001 | Moldova | ||
| 2000–2001 | Zimbru Chișinău | ||
| 2002–2004 | Nistru Otaci | ||
| 2004–2016 | Shakhtar Donetsk (assistant) | ||
| 2016–2017 | Zenit Saint Petersburg (assistant) | ||
| 2018–2019 | Moldova | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Playing career
editSpiridon played as a midfielder during his football career, winning the Moldovan Footballer of the Year award in 1992.[citation needed] He began his career at Nistru Chișinău, where his progression was hampered by a baldy broken leg, before moving to SKA Kiev in 1982.[1] He scored 3 goals in 34 games for the club.[2] Spiridon rejoined Nistru Chișinău in 1983 and played 19 times in his first season.[3] He made 16 appearances the following year,[4] and played 23 times for the club in 1985, scoring 4 goals.[5] In 1986, he played 27 matches and scored 3 goals.[6] He joined Zarya Bălți in 1987 and moved to Zimbru Chișinău in 1991. He was named the Moldovan Footballer of the Year award in 1992 and scored 12 goals in 30 appearances in the 1992-93 season.[7] In the 1993-94 season, he scored 13 goals in 20 games for the club.[8] He won five league titles in a row with the club between 1992 and 1996. He joined Tiligul Tiraspol in 1996 and ended his playing career with the club.
Spiridon made 16 appearances for the national team, scoring two goals.[9] On 2 July, in a friendly match against Georgia he scored the first goal in the history of recently created national team. He played his last international match on 29 March 1995 in a 3–0 defeat to Albania.[10]
Managerial career
editSpiridon joined Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in 2004 as the assistant manager to Mircea Lucescu. Shakhtar won the Ukrainian Premier League title in the 2004–05 season. Shakhtar have won the league seven times during Spiridon's time as assistant manager (2004–05, 2005–06, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13). They have also won four Ukrainian Cup trophies (2007–08, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13) and five Ukrainian Super Cup trophies (2005, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013). Shakhtar also won their first European trophy in the 2008–09 UEFA Cup, the last UEFA Cup before its rebranding as the UEFA Europa League.[citation needed]
When on 24 May 2016, Mircea Lucescu signed a contract with Russian club Zenit Saint Petersburg, Spiridon also moved to that club as assistant manager to Lucescu.[11]
Career statistics
edit| International goals of Alexandru Spiridon[12] | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1. | 2 July 1991 | Stadionul Republican, Chișinău, Moldova |  Georgia |
1–2 | 2–4 | Friendly |
| 2. | 22 August 1992 | Amman International Stadium, Amman, Jordan |  Sudan |
1–0 | 2–1 | Friendly |
Managerial statistics
edit- As of 11 June 2019[update]
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Moldova | 2018 | 2019 | 15 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 20.00 |
| Total | 15 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 20.00 | ||
Honours
editAs player
edit- Zimbru Chișinău
- Champion (5): 1992, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96
- Runner-up (1): 1996–97
- Winner (1): 1996–97
- Moldovan Footballer of the Year (1): 1992
As assistant manager
edit- Shakhtar Donetsk
- Winner (1): 2008–09
- Champion (8): 2004–05, 2005–06, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14
- Runner-up (4): 2006–07, 2008–09, 2014–15, 2015–16
- Winner (6): 2003–04, 2007–08, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2015–16
- Winner (7): 2005, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015
References
edit- ^ "Alexandru Spiridon". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ "SKA Kiev - 1982". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ "Nistru Chișinău - 1983". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ "Nistru Chișinău - 1984". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ "Nistru Chișinău - 1985". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ "Nistru Chișinău - 1986". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ "Zimbru Chișinău - 1982/83". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ "Zimbru Chișinău - 1983/84". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ "International appearances of Alexandru Spiridon". eu-football.info. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
- ^ "Albania vs Moldova 3-0". Retrieved 22 October 2013.
- ^ Alexandru Spiridon, antrenor secund la Zenit, jurnal.md
- ^ "Football PLAYER: Alexandru Spiridon". eu-football.info. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
External links
edit- Alexandru Spiridon at National-Football-Teams.com
- Alexandru Spiridon at EU-Football.info
- Alexandru Spiridon coach profile at Soccerway
- Alexandru Spiridon at Soccerway
- Profile at Eurosport