# Vasile Iordache

Vasile Iordache (born 9 October 1950) is a Romanian former football goalkeeper and coach.

## Club career

Vasile Iordache was born on 5 November 1946 in Iași, Romania and started playing football at the junior center of local club Politehnica under coach Mihai Bârsan, making his senior debut in Divizia A on 24 August 1969 in a 2–0 away loss to Farul Constanța. He was transferred at Steaua București in 1972 where he learned a lot about goalkeeping from the team's goalkeeper coach Ion Voinescu. He won two Divizia A titles under coach Emerich Jenei who used him in 13 matches in the campaign for the first title and in 14 for the second. He also won two Cupa României, being used by Jenei the whole 90 minutes of the 1976 final in which he kept a clean sheet in the 1–0 victory against CSU Galați. He was sent on the field by coach Gheorghe Constantin to replace Rică Răducanu in the 84th minute of the 3–0 victory against Sportul Studențesc București in the 1979 final. During his period spent with The Military Men, Iordache made a total of 231 Divizia A appearances, played 9 games in European competitions, competing to play for the team over the course of 12 seasons with other international goalkeepers like Narcis Coman, Carol Haidu, Dumitru Moraru and Rică Răducanu, also having a controversial moment when he got upset and left the field during a game with Argeș Pitești after conceding a goal because his defenders did not intervene, coach Jenei being forced to send Moraru to substitute him. Afterwards he went to play for FCM Brașov where he made his last Divizia A appearance on 20 November 1985 in a 2–0 away loss in front of Politehnica Timișoara, having a total of 271 appearances in the competition.

## International career

Vasile Iordache played 23 matches in which he conceded 27 goals at international level for Romania, making his debut on 12 May 1976 under coach Ștefan Kovács in a 1–0 loss in front of Bulgaria at the 1973–76 Balkan Cup final. He then went on to play three games at the successful 1977–80 Balkan Cup including appearing in all the minutes of the both legs from the 4–3 victory from the final against Yugoslavia. He also played four games at the 1982 World Cup qualifiers including all the minutes in the 2–1 home victory and the 0–0 from the Wembley Stadium against England, after the latter one being named "The hero of the Wembley" and receiving a 10 in the Sportul newspaper for the saves he made defending his goal post. He claims that after the game from England he had an offer from Nottingham Forest who recently just won two consecutive European Cup titles but could not accept the offer as transfers outside the country were not allowed by Romania's communist regime. Iordache was chosen by Mircea Lucescu to be part of Romania's squad for the Euro 1984 final tournament but did not play as Silviu Lung and Dumitru Moraru were the first-choice goalkeepers before him. His last appearance for the national team took place on 31 July 1984 in a friendly which ended with a 1–0 victory against China.
For representing his country at the Euro 1984 final tournament, Iordache was decorated by President of Romania Traian Băsescu on 25 March 2008 with the Ordinul "Meritul Sportiv" – (The Medal "The Sportive Merit") class III.

## Managerial career

In 1986 Iordache joined the squad of Steaua București as a goalkeeper coach, helping it win the 1985–86 European Cup and the 1986 European Super Cup. In 1990 he was named head coach of Universitatea Cluj, leading the team from the 5th round until the 17th of the 1990–91 Divizia A season. After leaving "U" Cluj, he returned to Steaua as an assistant coach one year later. In 1994 Iordache left Romania and for eight years coaches various teams in the United Arab Emirates, returning to Steaua in 2002 and joined the technical team of the club's under-21 side. From 2003 he was part of Cosmin Olăroiu's technical staff at Național București, Politehnica Timișoara and again Steaua or Al-Sadd.

## Personal life

Vasile Iordache's son, Andrei was also a footballer who played as a goalkeeper in the Romanian lower leagues.

## Honours
### Player

Steaua București
* Divizia A: 1975–76, 1977–78
* Cupa României: 1975–76, 1978–79
Romania
* Balkan Cup: 1977–80, runner-up 1973–76
Individual
* Romanian Footballer of the Year (fourth place): 1980, 1981,