- Dorin Goian
-
Dorin Goian 
Personal information Full name Dorin Nicolae Goian Date of birth 12 December 1980 Place of birth Suceava, Romania Height 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Playing position Centre back Club information Current club Rangers Number 2 Senior career* Years Team Apps† (Gls)† 1997–1999 Foresta II Fălticeni 14 (0) 1999–2002 Foresta Fălticeni 28 (2) 1999–2000 → Gloria Buzău (loan) 19 (0) 2002–2003 Ceahlăul Piatra Neamţ 45 (4) 2003–2005 Bacău 26 (2) 2005–2009 Steaua Bucureşti 136 (14) 2009–2011 Palermo 30 (1) 2011– Rangers 14 (0) National team‡ 2005– Romania 42 (5) * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19 November 2011.
† Appearances (Goals).
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 15 November 2011Dorin Goian (born 12 December 1980) is a Romanian footballer who plays for Scottish Premier League club Rangers. A physical centre back, he is also a member of the Romanian national team.
Contents
Club career
Foresta Fălticeni
In 1997, he signed for Foresta Fălticeni, a football club from Suceava County, where he played for the club's second team. Two years later, he was promoted to the first team. He made his first appearance in the Divizia A in 2000, when he was 20 years old in a match versus Gloria Bistriţa. It was a happy début for the young centre back, ashis team won the match 2–0.
Foresta Falticeni did not manage to keep up the good work, so at the end of the season, the team was relegated to the second division and never reached the first division again.
Despite the lamentable performances of his actual team Foresta that only managed to get the tenth place in the second division, Goian was remarked by the officials of Ceahlăul Piatra Neamţ, a small team from the First Romanian Division, and he was transferred there at the middle of the season.
Marin Barbu, the coach that discovered Goian, compared him to Gulliver due to his height. He said that Goian was a simple and hard-working boy, coming from a modest family and he never had problems with him. He also said that Goian was a model player for the other kids from his generation.
During his Foresta Fălticeni years, he was also loaned to Gloria Buzău for a few months in 2000.
Ceahlăul Piatra Neamt
After the 2003–04 season, Ceahlăul suffered the same fate as Foresta and were relegated to the second division. Goian, however, signed a contract with another small team from the first division, FCM Bacău.
He played for Ceahlăul Piatra Neamţ for one year, making 45 appearances and scoring two goals.
FCM Bacău
In 2003, he signed with FCM Bacău and played for Bacău in 26 league games, scoring two goals. While he was playing there, Goian was called up to the Romanian national team due to his impressive league performances.
After a great half of season with Bacău (2004–05), Goian managed to impress Steaua Bucureşti's officials. At the middle of the season, he made the jump to one of the most important teams in Romania.
Steaua Bucureşti
Goian at training session with Steaua Bucharest
On 4 March 2005, Goian signed a five-year contract with Steaua Bucureşti.[1] Steaua paid $100,000 in 2005 and €1000,000 in 2007 for Goian, in the autumn of 2004, after five hours of negotiations with Gheorghe Chivorchian, FCM Bacău's owner. Even though he only played four games in his initial season with Steaua, Goian continued to fight for a place in the starting XI and starting with the next season (2005–06), the young centre back managed to win the trust of his coach and implicitly he became one of the irreplaceable players from the team.
Goian scored his first goal in the UEFA Cup, against Vålerenga for Steaua with a perfect header inside the box. He soon became a top scorer for Steaua in the 2005–06 UEFA Cup season after scoring against RC Lens, Halmstads BK, and also SC Heerenveen.
He scored his team's second goal in the 4–2 loss away at Middlesbrough in the UEFA Cup semi-final, when Steaua were denied qualification in the final by conceding a goal in the 89th minute (they had won the home leg 1–0 and had taken a 2–0 lead in the away game 25 minutes in).
Borussia Dortmund showed interested in acquiring a centre back and contacted Steaua for Dorin Goian on 17 June 2007. But shortly after, they withdrew and signed the Croatian Robert Kovač from Juventus instead.
In the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League season, Steaua played against Zagłębie Lubin and FC BATE in order to qualify in the group stage. With the help of Goian, who scored against both teams, Steaua managed to qualify in the group stage. He would then score again for Steaua against Slavia Prague, but it wasn't enough, and Steaua lost the game with 2–1.
The officials of VfB Stuttgart were impressed by Goian's performance against the Netherlands on 13 October 2007 and were willing to pay €3.8 million for him, but club owner Gigi Becali said that he will not give Goian up for at least €4.5 million. On 23 June 2008, the Stuttgart Journal announced that Steaua has lowered the price of the center back to €3 million. He was watched by Stuttgart officials at UEFA Euro 2008, where he played against France and Italy.[2]
On 17 October 2007, Le Quotidien erroneously stated that Dorin Goian will join Manchester United next winter. After "Goe" scored for Romania against the Netherlands in Euro 2008, Gigi Becali raised his price up to €5 million. At the time, however, Manchester United had several marquee centre backs on their roster, including Rio Ferdinand, Nemanja Vidić, Mikaël Silvestre, and John O'Shea, and the move never transpired on their books.[3] Former Romanian international Adrian Ilie said that "Goian has proved to be a valuable player, he scored decisive goals in Liga I. He has the qualities to play for Manchester United, because he plays in the defensive structure and also scores goals.
Goian was captain for the first time for Steaua on 24 October 2007 against Sevilla when Nicolae Dica, the first captain, was substituted. The match ended 2–1 for Sevilla.
Another offer came in October 2007 for Goian from English side Manchester City. Rumour has it that the offer was around €10 million. This never, however, came to fruition. The Manchester United scouts had watched him during the Romania vs. Netherlands match, which was won by Romania 1–0, with the only goal scored by Goian. He was also watched by Manchester City in the UEFA Cup semi-final against Middlesbrough, where he would score again.[4]
Goian was 50% Steaua's player and also 50% FCM Bacău's player, the team from which he transferred to Steaua. There was a clause in his contract, which said that if he would be sold to a foreign club, Steaua would have to pay Bacău 50% off the transfer fee, but not more than €1 million. Gigi Becali, Steaua's owner, paid €1 million to Bacău and so Goian belonged entirely to Steaua. Becali paid the fee after the match against Slavia Prague in the UEFA Champions League group stage on 16 October 2007.[5]
Goian was the most booked player from Steaua in the 2007–08 season in Liga I, with nine yellow cards and one red card.
On 1 July 2008, Goian started a conflict with chairman Gigi Becali, saying that he wants to leave Steaua before the beginning of the new season, but because of his high transfer fee he cannot leave the club in the near future. He also mentioned that the club's officials are not taking seriously offers for him. Gigi Becali stated that he is the one who chosed a player's transfer fee and that Goian will no longer be included in the first eleven in any circumstances.[6]
On 9 July 2008, Sunderland showed interest in Steaua defender Dorin Goian.[7] He was expected to sign on 12 July 2008 for an undisclosed fee and complement Nyron Nosworthy as first choice centre half. He would have replaced Jonny Evans who has returned to Manchester United after his loan expired last season but Roy Keane was not willing to pay the asking price of more than £3 million.[8]
On 4 April 2009, Goian was named captain against Gloria Bistrita, as the main captain Sorin Ghionea was injured. Although Petre Marin was the oldest player of the team, couch Marius Lacatus considered that Goian would make a better captain. The match ended with Steaua's victory, Kapetanos scoring the only goal. He scored his first goal of the 2008–09 season with a successful penalty against Oţelul Galaţi. The game ended with Steaua's victory by five goals, being their largest win this season so far.
On 30 July 2009, he captained Steaua's victory with 3–0 against Motherwell F.C. and also contributed at the first goal with a header which led to an own goal by Motherwell's Stephen Craigan. He also missed a penalty for which he was heavily criticised by chairman Gigi Becali who decided to take him off the penalty kicker list.[9]
Goian was the most booked player from Steaua in the 2008–09 season in Liga I with 10 yellow cards and 4 in European Cups.
Palermo (2009–2011)
On 6 August 2009, Palermo had showed interest in the central defender and bought him for €2m.[10] There he met up once again with his former coach, Walter Zenga, with his contract paying him €550.000 per season as salary.[10] He played his first game in a Palermo shirt in a friendly against Mallorca, of which the match ended as a 2–0 for the Spanish opposition. Goian's Serie A début came against Roma, a match in which he played the full 90 minutes.
In his first season at the club, Goian was mostly used as a covering replacement for defensive regulars Simon Kjær and Cesare Bovo. Following Kjær's departure to Steve McClaren's VfL Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga, Goian was originally expected to achieve considerably more first team opportunities; however, he sustained a number of injuries which prevented him from doing so. Upon fully recovering and returning back to the starting lineup later in March, and in doing so making his first 2011 appearance in the league, Goian scored the winning goal against league-leaders A.C. Milan; and coincidentally, it was also Goian's first Serie A league goal, as well as his first goal as Palermo player.
Rangers (2011–)
On 25 July, Palermo agreed an undisclosed fee with Scottish Champions Rangers regarding Goian, who subsequently signed a three year contract.[11] On 29 July, Goian received his work permit[12], and made his Rangers debut the following day against St Johnstone in a 2–0 win, which was also his new manager Ally McCoist's first win in charge of the Glasgow based club.[13] He was due to play his first European Champions League Qualifier for Rangers on 4th August 2011 after successfully appealing to UEFA who earlier deemed him ineligible. He unfortunately injured his hamstring and was unable to play. Goian made his Old Firm debut on the 18th of September 2011 in a 4–2 victory and was praised heavily by the Rangers fans. Goian quickly became a fans favourite at Rangers putting in many consistent and impressive displays. Goian formed a strong partnership with Carlos Bocanegra who also signed for the SPL Champions in the same transfer window and the pair cemented their places in the side as first choice centre backs.[14] He scored his first goal for Rangers in a 3–2 defeat to Falkirk in the Scottish League Cup on 21 September 2011.[citation needed].
International career
He was selected by Victor Piturca for the Romanian national team in 16 November 2005 against Nigeria, thus being his first appearance in the national team. Goian has won 40 caps for Romania, scoring 5 times.
75% of the Romanian national team matches in the Euro 2008 qualifying stages were played with Goian on the field from the first minute.
Euro 2008
On 9 June 2008, Goian made his Euro 2008 entrance against the World Cup 2006 finalist France in a Group C match in Zürich, Switzerland. He managed to stop strikers Nicolas Anelka and Karim Benzema, helping Romania win their first point with a goalless draw against France and also gaining his 20th cap.
The second match in Group C against Italy found Goian once again playing from the first minute on the pitch. Romania managed to draw 1–1 with Italy. After a foul committed in the 73rd minute he took the ball and threw it in the air. The referee gave him a yellow card and Goian will not play in the next game against the Netherlands.
International goals
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1 7 October 2006 Steaua, Bucharest, Romania 
Belarus3–1 3–1 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying 2 12 September 2007 RheinEnergieStadion, Cologne, Germany 
Germany1–0 1–3 Friendly 3 13 October 2007 Farul, Constanţa, Romania 
Netherlands1–0 1–0 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying 4 11 October 2008 Farul, Constanţa, Romania 
France2–0 2–2 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification 5 19 November 2008 Dinamo, Bucharest, Romania 
Georgia2–1 2–1 Friendly Correct as of 11 November 2011 Career statistics
- As of 19 November 2011
Club Season League Cup Europe Total App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals Foresta Suceava 1999–00 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Total 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Gloria Buzău (loan) 1999–00 19 0 0 0 0 0 19 0 Total 19 0 0 0 0 0 19 0 Foresta Suceava 2000–01 15 0 0 0 0 0 15 0 2001–02 11 2 0 0 0 0 11 2 Total 26 2 0 0 0 0 26 2 Ceahlăul 2001–02 9 0 0 0 0 0 9 0 2002–03 23 2 0 0 0 0 23 2 2003–04 13 0 0 0 2 1 15 1 Total 45 2 0 0 2 1 47 3 FCM Bacău 2003–04 12 0 0 0 0 0 12 0 2004–05 14 2 0 0 0 0 14 2 Total 26 2 0 0 0 0 26 2 Steaua Bucureşti 2004–05 4 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 2005–06 23 2 1 0 14 5 38 7 2006–07 28 1 3 0 11 0 42 1 2007–08 23 2 0 0 8 3 33 5 2008–09 25 1 0 0 7 1 32 2 2009–10 1 0 0 0 3 0 4 0 Total 104 6 4 0 43 9 151 15 Palermo 2009–10 14 0 0 0 0 0 14 0 2010–11 16 1 3 0 3 0 22 1 Total 30 1 3 0 3 0 36 1 Rangers 2011–12 14 0 1 1 1 0 16 1 Total 14 0 1 1 1 0 16 1 Career Totals 266 13 8 1 49 10 323 24 Honours
Season Club Title 2005–2006 
Steaua BucureştiDivizia A 2005–2006 Steaua BucureştiSupercupa României Personal life
On 23 October 2006, he became a father for the first time. His wife, Nadia, gave birth to a girl, who they named Maya Maria, since 7 January 2010 he has a son too, who was named Nectarie Matei.
Dorin's brother, Lucian, is also a professional footballer who plays for Astra Ploieşti.
References
- ^ "Dorin Goian a semnat cu Steaua". FCSB (official website). 4 March 2005. http://www.steauafc.com/ro/articole/dorin_goian_a_semnat_cu_steaua_e397/. Retrieved 23 September 2007.
- ^ "Dorin Goian, în vizorul lui VfB Stuttgart" (in Romanian). Realitatea. http://www.realitatea.net/dorin-goian--in-vizorul-lui-vfb-stuttgart_303431.html. Retrieved 23 June 2008.
- ^ "Player Details: Dorin Goian". stanjames.com. http://stanjames.teamtalk.com/football/euro2008/stanjamesuk/player/0,23246,13955_129913,00.html. Retrieved 15 November 2008.
- ^ "Manchester City looks up Goian". ESPN Soccernet. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/players/international?id=33498&league=uefa.euro&&cc=5739. Retrieved 12 October 2007.
- ^ "Dorin Goian e 100% al Stelei" (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. http://www.gsp.ro/fotbal/liga-1/dorin-goian-e-100-al-stelei-12613.html. Retrieved 16 October 2007.
- ^ "Becali: "Goian va fi rezervă de acum încolo, îl las să plece pe cât vrea el"" (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. http://www.gsp.ro/fotbal/liga-1/becali-goian-va-fi-rezerva-de-acum-incolo-il-las-sa-plece-pe-cat-vrea-el-85240.html. Retrieved 1 July 2008.
- ^ "Sunderland want Romanian star Dorin Goian". London: The Sun. 12 July 2008. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/1413236/Sunderland-want-Romanian-star-Dorin-Goian.html. Retrieved 2008-07-12.
- ^ Colin Young (2008-07-15). "More cash and Champions League football; two reasons Goian could choose Kiev ahead of Sunderland". London: The Daily Mail (UK). http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1035340/More-cash-Champions-League-football--reasons-Goian-choose-Kiev-ahead-Sunderland.html. Retrieved 21 September 2008.
- ^ "Becali: "Nu el trebuia să bată!"" (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. http://www.gsp.ro/international/europa-league/becali-s-a-suparat-pe-goian-pentru-ratarea-penaltyului-nu-el-trebuia-sa-bata-149184.html. Retrieved 31 July 2009.
- ^ a b "Official: Dorin Goian joins Palermo". Goal.com. http://www.goal.com/en/news/10/italy/2009/08/06/1426153/official-dorin-goian-joins-palermo-from-steaua-bucharest. Retrieved 6 August 2009.
- ^ "Exclusive: Dorin Signs". rangers.co.uk (official website). http://www.rangers.co.uk/articles/20110725/exclusive-dorin-signs_2254024_2401536. Retrieved 25 July 2011.
- ^ "Goian To Face Saints". rangers.co.uk (official website). http://www.rangers.co.uk/articles/20110729/goian-to-face-saints_2254024_2404974. Retrieved 29 July 2011.
- ^ "St Johnstone 0-2 Rangers". BBC Sport. 30 July 2011. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/scot_prem/14321296.stm. Retrieved 30 July 2011.
- ^ http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/football/spl/2011/10/23/unlikely-rangers-heroes-carlos-bocanegra-and-dorin-goian-look-to-develop-partnership-86908-23508984/
External links
- Dorin Goian career stats at RomanianSoccer.ro
- Dorin Goian statistics at ESPNsoccernet
- Dorin Goian at Goal.com
- Profile at UEFA.com
Rangers F.C. – current squad 1 McGregor · 2 Goian · 3 Weir (c) · 4 Broadfoot · 5 Papac · 6 McCulloch · 7 Edu · 8 Davis · 9 Jelavić · 10 Fleck · 11 Lafferty · 12 Wallace · 14 Naismith · 15 Healy · 16 Whittaker · 17 Ortiz · 18 Bocanegra · 20 McKay · 21 Bedoya · 22 Bartley · 23 McMillan · 25 Alexander · 26 Ness · 27 Wylde · 28 Kerkar · 32 Perry · 33 Bendiksen · 38 Hemmings · 41 McCabe · Manager: McCoist
Romania squad – UEFA Euro 2008 
Categories:- 1980 births
- Living people
- People from Suceava
- Romanian footballers
- Romania international footballers
- Romanian expatriate footballers
- FC Ceahlăul Piatra Neamţ players
- FC Gloria Buzău players
- FCM Bacău players
- FC Steaua Bucureşti players
- U.S. Città di Palermo players
- Rangers F.C. players
- Association football fullbacks
- UEFA Euro 2008 players
- Liga I players
- Serie A footballers
- Scottish Premier League players
- Expatriate footballers in Italy
- Expatriate footballers in Scotland
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