Laurențiu Aurelian Reghecampf (born 19 September 1975) is a Romanian professional football manager and former player, currently the head coach of Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 club Espérance de Tunis.

Laurențiu Reghecampf
Reghecampf coaching Steaua București in 2013
Personal information
Full name Laurențiu Aurelian Reghecampf
Date of birth (1975-09-19) 19 September 1975 (age 49)
Place of birth Târgoviște, Romania
Height 1.74 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Midfielder
Team information
Current team
Espérance de Tunis (head coach)
Youth career
1987–1993 CS Târgoviște
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1993–1996 Oțelul Târgoviște 49 (4)
1993–1994St. Pölten (loan) 1 (0)
1997–2000 Steaua București 73 (5)
1998–1999Litex Lovech (loan) 14 (4)
2000–2004 Energie Cottbus 135 (17)
2005–2008 Alemannia Aachen 90 (18)
2008–2009 1. FC Kaiserslautern 2 (1)
Total 365 (49)
International career
2003 Romania 1 (0)
Managerial career
2009–2010 FC Snagov
2010 FC Universitatea Craiova
2010 Gloria Bistrița
2010–2011 FC Snagov
2011 FC Universitatea Craiova
2011 FC Snagov
2011–2012 Concordia Chiajna
2012–2014 Steaua București
2014–2015 Al-Hilal
2015 Litex Lovech
2015–2017 Steaua București
2017–2018 Al Wahda
2019–2020 Al-Wasl
2021 Al Ahli
2021–2022 Universitatea Craiova
2022–2023 Neftchi Baku
2023 Universitatea Craiova
2023–2024 Al-Tai
2024– Espérance de Tunis
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Playing career

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Club

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Reghecampf was born in Târgoviște and began his career in his native city with Chindia. In the 1993–94 season, at the age of 18, Reghecampf was given to Austrian Bundesliga side SKN St. Pölten.[1]

He later joined Steaua București where he won the league title twice. One year later, Reghecampf was loaned to Bulgarian side Litex Lovech, with whom he won the 1999 A PFG title.

In 2000, he was bought by German Bundesliga team Energie Cottbus. In 2004, he joined Alemannia Aachen, with whom he would become a fan favorite his side won promotion to the Bundesliga in his first season with the club. A few seasons later he was named captain of Alemannia. In the 2006–07 season of the German Cup, Reghecampf scored twice in a 4–2 victory over Bayern Munich, thus eliminating them from the competition.[2]

On 4 July 2008, he joined second-tier side 1. FC Kaiserslautern on a free transfer for the 2008–09 2. Bundesliga season, only being able to play two matches because of a gastric virus infection, announcing his retirement in 2009 after his contract had not been extended.

International

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Laurențiu Reghecampf made one appearance for Romania on 29 March 2003 when coach Anghel Iordănescu sent him on the field in the 62nd minute in order to replace Paul Codrea in a match which ended with a 5–2 home loss against Denmark at the Euro 2004 qualifiers.[3][4][5]

Managerial career

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Reghecampf started his managerial career with Liga II side Snagov in 2009. At the end of 2009–10 season, he was brought at Universitatea Craiova to save the team from relegation. He ended his quest successfully, but he was not kept at Craiova for the new season. Instead, Reghecampf joined Gloria Bistrița. He was sacked after only 12 games because of poor results. Reghecampf returned to Snagov, but after only five games he was called back to Craiova, to help the team avoid relegation. He was sacked after only six games, following a conflict with several players.

 
Reghecampf in 2013

He started the 2011–12 season at FC Snagov, for a second spell. In December 2011, he signed a contract with Romanian Liga I club Concordia Chiajna, with the main objective to avoid relegation, after a half-season the club was above the relegation zone 17th overall when he took over.[6] He changed almost the entire squad, bringing 17 new players, most of them from Snagov, and after a series of wins, his side finished the season in ninth place.

Steaua Bucuresti

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This evolution brought the attention of his former team, Steaua București, and at the end of the season, they offered him a contract for a season. His objective was to bringt the first championship title for Steaua after a seven-year absence. In March 2013, he guided Steaua to the last 16 of the Europa League after eliminating Ajax from the competition. The first leg away finished with a 2–0 win to Ajax in Amsterdam. In the second leg home, Steaua took a 2–0 lead and the 2–2 aggregate pushed the game into extra-time. Steaua beat the Dutch side 4–2 on penalties.[7] Steaua were eliminated by eventual winners Chelsea after winning 1–0 in the first leg at home and losing 1–3 away at Stamford Bridge. In May 2013 he mathematically won the Romanian League and later the Romanian Supercup. On 9 May 2014, Steaua and Reghecampf won their second consecutive league title.[8] He helped Steaua to qualify for the UEFA Champions League group stages. Reghecampf also lead his side to the Romanian Cup final which Steaua lost 4–2 on penalties to league runners-up Astra Giurgiu.[9]

Al-Hilal

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On 27 May 2014, he signed a two-year contract with Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal.[10] He led Al-Hilal to the AFC Champions League final five months after his appointment, by defeating Al-Ain 4–2 on aggregate in semi-finals. However, his side lost the final to Western Sydney Wanderers on a two-leg match. He was sacked on 15 February 2015 after another final loss, in the Saudi Crown Prince Cup.[11]

In August 2015, he was appointed manager of Bulgarian side Litex Lovech.[12] In December 2015, Reghecampf announced his decision to leave the club to join Steaua București for the second time.[13] In May 2017, he stepped down as manager.

On 3 July 2017, Reghecampf was announced as the new head coach of the Emirati club Al Wahda on a 2-year deal replacing Javier Aguirre.[14] According to sources, his salary will be $2.6 million per season plus potential bonuses up to another $1.6 million.[15] On 16 September 2017, in his Arabian Gulf League debut, Al-Wahda defeated Dibba Al-Fujairah 5–0.[16]

In January 2019, Reghecampf took over as manager of relegation-threatened UAE Pro League club Al-Wasl.[17] Eventually, he heeded them from relegation after a strong run.[18]

On 1 April 2021, Reghecampf was announced as the new manager of Saudi Professional League club Al Ahli.[19] Less than two months later, after two wins, two draws and a loss, he was dismissed.[20]

On 26 July 2021, Reghecampf returned to his native Romania, where he signed a two-year contract to become the new manager of CS Universitatea Craiova.[21] After finishing the previous season third in the league table, the team saw themselves in sixth position in December 2021, triggering rumours of his premature departure from the club.[22][23] As a result, Reghecampf transfer-listed several first-team players, including Mihai Bălașa, Matteo Fedele, Antoni Ivanov and Mihai Roman.[24] In June 2022, he stepped down as coach.[25]

On 21 June 2022, Neftchi Baku announced the appointment of Reghecampf on a two-year contract.[26]After one year, on 21 June 2023, Reghecampf left Neftçi by mutual agreement.[27]

On 25 September 2023, Reghecampf was appointed as manager of Saudi Pro League club Al-Tai.[28]

On 5 November 2024, Reghecampf signed a contract with Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1 club Espérance de Tunis until June 2026.[29]

Managerial statistics

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As of match played 26 November 2024[30][31]
Team From To Record
G W D L GF GA GD Win %
  FC Snagov 14 August 2009 13 May 2010 29 16 5 8 57 36 +21 055.17
  FC Universitatea Craiova 14 May 2010 23 May 2010 2 1 0 1 3 2 +1 050.00
  Gloria Bistrița 3 June 2010 23 October 2010 13 3 4 6 16 17 −1 023.08
  FC Snagov 28 November 2010 3 April 2011 5 3 1 1 7 5 +2 060.00
  FC Universitatea Craiova 4 April 2011 1 May 2011 5 1 1 3 3 8 −5 020.00
  FC Snagov 27 June 2011 17 December 2011 16 6 6 4 26 21 +5 037.50
  Concordia Chiajna 18 December 2011 20 May 2012 16 11 1 4 30 20 +10 068.75
  Steaua București 21 May 2012 27 May 2014 103 63 27 13 205 91 +114 061.17
  Al-Hilal 28 May 2014 15 February 2015 24 13 6 5 40 19 +21 054.17
  Litex Lovech 7 August 2015 2 December 2015 17 8 7 2 29 14 +15 047.06
  Steaua București 3 December 2015 19 May 2017 73 37 20 16 104 73 +31 050.68
  Al Wahda 3 July 2017 24 November 2018 62 36 10 16 141 96 +45 058.06
  Al Wasl 26 December 2018 18 October 2020 61 25 11 25 99 126 −27 040.98
  Al Ahli 27 March 2021 30 June 2021 11 3 4 4 15 20 −5 027.27
  Universitatea Craiova 26 July 2021 12 June 2022 45 26 7 12 86 37 +49 057.78
  Neftchi Baku 21 June 2022 20 June 2023 45 24 8 13 73 47 +26 053.33
  Universitatea Craiova 26 July 2023 18 September 2023 7 4 1 2 11 8 +3 057.14
  Al-Tai 25 September 2023 8 April 2024 19 4 3 12 21 43 −22 021.05
  Espérance de Tunis 5 November 2024 present 2 1 1 0 5 1 +4 050.00
Total 555 285 123 147 971 684 +287 051.35

Football academy

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In July 2015, he opened the Reghecampf Soccer Academy, which is a school for kids that want to learn how to play soccer. The academy is based in the United States and located in Henderson, Nevada.[32]

Honours

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Player

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Oțelul Târgoviște

Steaua București

Litex Lovech

Manager

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Steaua București

Al Hilal

Al Wahda

Neftchi Baku

Individual

References

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  1. ^ "Player Profile – Laurențiu Reghecampf". Kicker. Retrieved 5 June 2011.
  2. ^ "Ex-Cottbuser Reghecampf schießt Bayern ab". lr-online.de (in German). 22 December 2006. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
  3. ^ "International Matches 2003". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 8 September 2011.
  4. ^ "Laurențiu Reghecampf". European Football. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  5. ^ "Romania – Denmark 2:5". European Football. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
  6. ^ "Concordia şi-a găsit un nou antrenor" (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. 19 December 2011. Retrieved 12 March 2012.
  7. ^ "Steaua hero itching to take on Chelsea". UEFA. 22 February 2013. Retrieved 27 April 2013.
  8. ^ "Steaua Bucharest win Romanian title". FIFA. 9 May 2014. Archived from the original on 12 May 2014. Retrieved 10 May 2014.
  9. ^ "Reghecampf steps down as Steaua coach". UEFA. 27 May 2014. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
  10. ^ "Al Hilal appoint Reghecampf". Asian Football Confederation. 27 May 2014. Archived from the original on 12 July 2014. Retrieved 28 May 2014.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  11. ^ "Al-Hilal terminate Mr. Reghecampf's contract, and appoint "Mr. Ciprian" as a head coach of football first team". AlHilal.com. 15 February 2015. Archived from the original on 16 February 2015. Retrieved 15 February 2015.
  12. ^ "New Litex coach Reghecampf eyes domestic double". Eurosport. 7 August 2015. Retrieved 8 August 2015.
  13. ^ "Reghecampf revine la Steaua" (in Romanian). DigiSport. 2 December 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
  14. ^ "Romanian Reghecampf to take charge at Al Wahda". Gulf News. 20 May 2017. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  15. ^ "Salariu uriaș pentru Reghecampf la arabi, din salariu și bonusuri. Milionar în dolari la Al Wahda!". Libertatea. 15 May 2017.
  16. ^ "Al Wahda 5–0 Dibba Al Fujairah". Goal.com. 16 September 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2017.
  17. ^ Monaghan, Matt (6 January 2019). "Football news: New Al Wasl coach Laurentiu Reghecampf vows to drag them out of AGL relegation 'crisis' - Sport360 News". Sport360.
  18. ^ Gomes, Alaric (6 March 2020). "Reghecampf hopes to keep momentum after Al Wasl edge past Al Dhafra in AGL". Gulf News.
  19. ^ "Laurenţiu Reghecampf, noul antrenor al echipei saudite Al Ahli". Dotto TV (in Romanian). 1 April 2021.
  20. ^ "Al Ahli renunță la Reghecampf! Anunțul făcut în Arabia Saudită". DigiSport (in Romanian). 11 May 2021.
  21. ^ Olteanu, Ştefan (26 July 2021). "Laurențiu Reghecampf este noul antrenor de la Universitatea Craiova! Oltenii au făcut anunțul oficial". Playsport (in Romanian).
  22. ^ Staicu, Cosmin (20 December 2021). "Laurenţiu Reghecampf, aproape de despărţirea de Universitatea Craiova! Antrenorului nu i se reproșează doar rezultatele negative | EXCLUSIV". Prosport (in Romanian).
  23. ^ Comănescu, Nicolae (29 December 2021). "CS U Craiova caută urgent antrenor care să-i ia locul lui Laurențiu Reghecampf. Cine a intrat în vizorul oltenilor". evz.ro (in Romanian).
  24. ^ Alexandru, Ion (3 January 2022). "Reghecampf face schimbări majore la Universitatea Craiova în această iarnă". Eurosport (in Romanian).
  25. ^ "Craiova anunță despărțirea de Laurențiu Reghecampf: "Mulțumim pentru tot ce ai realizat la Știința"". Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). 12 June 2022. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  26. ^ "A New Head Coach For Neftchi PFC". neftchi.az. Neftçi Baku. 21 June 2022. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  27. ^ "Baş məşqçi və köməkçiləri ilə yollar ayrıldı". neftchi.az (in Azerbaijani). Neftçi PFK. 21 June 2023. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
  28. ^ "الطائي.. ثالث محطات ريجيكامب في السعودية".
  29. ^ "Laurențiu Reghecampf takes the reins at Espérance".
  30. ^ "Laurentiu Reghecampf" (in Romanian). Labtof.ro. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  31. ^ "Profile of Laurentiu Reghecampf". FootballDatabase.eu. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  32. ^ "Business Licenses City of Las Vegas". Vegasinc.com. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
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