# Michael Klein (footballer, born 1959)

Michael "Mișa" Klein (10 October 1959 – 2 February 1993) was a Romanian footballer who played as a left-back.

## Early years

Michael Klein, nicknamed Mișa, was born on 10 October 1959 in Amnaș, Romania, being half of Transylvanian Saxon origin from his father side.

## Club career

He started to play football at Corvinul Hunedoara's youth center in 1973, making his debut for the senior team on 24 August 1977 under coach Ștefan Coidum in a Divizia A match which ended 2–2 with Argeș Pitești. In the following season he was sent on a loan at Divizia B team, Aurul Brad, but in the 1978–79 Divizia A season he was brought back to Corvinul by the team's new coach, Mircea Lucescu. At the end of Klein and Lucescu's first season spent at Corvinul Hunedoara, the club relegated to Divizia B, but Klein stayed with the club, promoting back to the first division after one year, helping the club finish third in the 1981–82 Divizia A, also appearing in all four games from the 1982–83 UEFA Cup campaign, scoring once as they got past Grazer AK in the first round, being eliminated in the following one by FK Sarajevo. For the way he played in 1985, Klein was placed fifth in the ranking for the Romanian Footballer of the Year award.
After 11 seasons and a half spent with Corvinul Hunedoara in which he scored 37 goals in 313 league games, in the middle of the 1988–89 season he was transferred at Dinamo București where he reunited with his former Corvinul manager, Mircea Lucescu. In his first season spent with The Red Dogs, he didn't win any trophies and he played two games in the 1988–89 European Cup Winners' Cup where the club reached the quarter-finals, being eliminated on the away goals rule after 1–1 on aggregate by Sampdoria.
In the following season he won The Double with the club, Lucescu giving him 23 appearances in which he scored two goals in the league, also playing all the minutes in the 6–4 over rivals Steaua București from the Cupa României final and he played seven matches in the 1989–90 European Cup Winners' Cup, scoring once against Panathinaikos, the team reaching the semi-finals where they were eliminated after 2–0 on aggregate by Anderlecht.
After the 1989 Romanian Revolution, Klein went to play in Germany for Bayer Uerdingen, making his Bundesliga debut on 14 September 1990 when coach Horst Wohlers used him all the minutes in a 2–0 away loss in front of Karlsruher SC. The team relegated at the end of his first season but he stayed with the club, helping it promote back after one year. Also during his period spent in Germany he was teammate with compatriot Daniel Timofte.

## International career

Michael Klein played 89 matches and scored five goals at international level for Romania, making his debut on 9 September 1981 when coach Valentin Stănescu sent him on the field in the 49th minute in order to replace Aurel Beldeanu in a friendly which ended with a 2–1 loss against Bulgaria.
His following appearance was a 0–0 with Switzerland at the 1982 World Cup qualifiers and he scored his first two goals in a friendly which ended with a 3–2 victory against Chile. He made seven appearances at the successful Euro 1984 qualifiers in which he scored one goal in a 2–0 win over Sweden, being used by coach Mircea Lucescu in all the minutes of the three matches from the final tournament as Romania did not pass the group stage. He played seven games at the 1986 World Cup qualifiers, six matches with one goal scored in a 1–0 away victory against Albania at the Euro 1988 qualifiers and made five appearances at the successful 1990 World Cup qualifiers, being used by coach Emerich Jenei in all the minutes of the four matches from the final tournament, as Romania got eliminated by Ireland in the eight-finals. Michael Klein played six games at the Euro 1992 qualifiers and in the last one of them, he made his final appearance for the national team which took place on 13 November 1991 in a 1–0 victory against Switzerland.

## Death and legacy

On 2 February 1993, Klein died of a heart attack during a training session with Bayer Uerdingen at the age of 33.
Michael Klein has a total of 322 matches and 36 goals scored in Divizia A, 37 matches in Bundesliga, 25 games in 2. Bundesliga and 13 games played with two goals scored in European competitions.
The Stadionul Michael Klein from Hunedoara is named in his honor, also in front of the stadium there is a statue of Michael Klein. A book about him was written by Nicolae Stanciu, called Klein, căpitanul lui Lucescu. Cronici sentimentale (Klein, Lucescu's captain. Sentimental chronicles).

## Career statistics
### International

Appearances and goals by national team and year :
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
| Romania | 1981 | 2 | 0 |
| Romania | 1982 | 11 | 4 |
| Romania | 1983 | 13 | 0 |
| Romania | 1984 | 9 | 0 |
| Romania | 1985 | 8 | 0 |
| Romania | 1986 | 9 | 0 |
| Romania | 1987 | 8 | 1 |
| Romania | 1988 | 8 | 0 |
| Romania | 1989 | 6 | 0 |
| Romania | 1990 | 11 | 0 |
| Romania | 1991 | 4 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 89 | 5 |
    Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Klein goal.
List of international goals scored by Michael Klein :
| # | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 18 May 1982 | Estadio Nacional de Chile, Ñuñoa, Chile | 7 | Chile | 1–0 | 3–2 | Friendly |
| 2 | 18 May 1982 | Estadio Nacional de Chile, Ñuñoa, Chile | 7 | Chile | 2–0 | 3–2 | Friendly |
| 3 | 15 July 1982 | Stadionul Areni, Suceava, Romania | 8 | Japan | 1–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 4 | 8 September 1982 | Stadionul 23 August, Bucharest, Romania | 11 | Sweden | 2–0 | 2–0 | Euro 1984 qualifiers |
| 5 | 28 October 1987 | Flamurtari Stadium, Vlorë, Albania | 59 | Albania | 1–0 | 1–0 | Euro 1988 qualifiers |

## Honours

Corvinul Hunedoara
* Divizia B: 1979–80
Dinamo București
* Divizia A: 1989–90
* Cupa României: 1989–90
Bayer Uerdingen
* 2. Bundesliga: 1991–92
Individual
* Gazeta Sporturilor Romanian Footballer of the Year (fifth place): 1985