Cristian Săpunaru
 Săpunaru training with Porto | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ionuţ Cristian Săpunaru | ||
| Date of birth | 5 April 1984 | ||
| Place of birth | Bucharest, Romania | ||
| Height | 1.87 m (6 ft 1 1⁄2 in) | ||
| Playing position | Defender | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Elche | ||
| Number | 19 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1990–2002 | Național București | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 2002–2006 | Național București | 34 | (3) |
| 2003–2004 | → Callatis Mangalia (loan) | 10 | (0) |
| 2006–2008 | Rapid București | 51 | (3) |
| 2008–2012 | Porto | 56 | (2) |
| 2010 | → Rapid București (loan) | 10 | (3) |
| 2012–2013 | Zaragoza | 29 | (2) |
| 2013– | Elche | 4 | (1) |
| National team | |||
| 2006 | Romania U21 | 3 | (0) |
| 2008–2011 | Romania | 9 | (0) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19 August 2013. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Ionuţ Cristian Săpunaru (born 5 April 1984 in Bucharest) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays for Elche CF in La Liga. Mainly a right back, he can also play as central defender.
Club career
Early years / Porto
A product of FC Național București's youth system, playing with the team since he was six years old, Săpunaru joined FC Rapid București in July 2006. In the summer of 2008 he was sold for €2.5 million to Portugal's F.C. Porto and signed a five-year contract,[1] with the top division outfit owning 50% of the player's rights – Romanian sources indicated the price was actually €6 million plus two players.[2]
During his debut campaign Săpunaru was first-choice right-back, as the northerners achieved a double, and scored his first goal in a League Cup 1–2 away loss against C.D. Nacional.
In early February 2010, he was suspended in Portugal – as his teammate Hulk – following incidents during a league loss at S.L. Benfica (0–1), so he returned to his country for a five-month loan, joining former club Rapid.[3] He did not manage to be played regularly at Porto during that time but, following his return for 2010–11, became a very important first-team unit as the team won three major titles, appearing in 40 official games in the process.
Real Zaragoza
On 31 August 2012, Săpunaru signed a one-year contract with La Liga club Real Zaragoza.[4] He made his official debut on 16 September, playing the full 90 minutes in a 0–2 loss at Real Sociedad.[5]
In his first season in Aragon, Săpunaru started but also suffered team relegation. He also entered his name in the competition's history books, after breaking the record for the most bookings in a single campaign (19 yellow cards and one red).[6]
International career
Săpunaru made his debut for the Romanian national team on 31 May 2008 against Montenegro, and was selected to the nation's squad at UEFA Euro 2008, although he did not play in the final stages.
Honours
Club
- Rapid Bucharest
- Porto
- UEFA Europa League: 2010–11
- Portuguese League: 2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12
- Portuguese Cup: 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11
- Portuguese Supercup: 2009, 2010, 2011
- UEFA Super Cup: Runner-up 2011
Club statistics
(Correct as of 26 May 2012)
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Național București | |||||||||
| 2002–03 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2003–04 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| Callatis Mangalia | |||||||||
| 2003–04 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |
| Total | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | |
| Național București | |||||||||
| 2004–05 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | |
| 2005–06 | 23 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 3 | |
| Total | 34 | 3 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 3 | |
| Rapid București | |||||||||
| 2006–07 | 19 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 28 | 1 | |
| 2007–08 | 32 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 36 | 2 | |
| Total | 51 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 64 | 3 | |
| Porto | |||||||||
| 2008–09 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 25 | 0 | |
| 2009–10 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
| Rapid București | |||||||||
| 2009–10 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3 | |
| Total | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3 | |
| Porto | |||||||||
| 2010–11 | 19 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 41 | 0 | |
| 2011–12 | 15 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 20 | 2 | |
| Total | 56 | 2 | 18 | 1 | 28 | 0 | 102 | 3 | |
| Zaragoza | |||||||||
| 2012–13 | 29 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 2 | |
| Total | 29 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | 2 | |
| Career total | 190 | 13 | 38 | 1 | 36 | 0 | 264 | 14 | |
References
- ↑ Rapid's Săpunaru plumps for Porto; UEFA.com, 14 July 2008
- ↑ Ce transfer !!! Sapunaru la FC Porto pentru 6 milioane + 2 jucatori (We have a transfer !!! Sapunaru to FC Porto for 6 million + 2 players); Sport Magazin, 9 July 2008 (Romanian)
- ↑ Sapunaru to return on loan to Rapid Bucharest; Romanian Times, 1 February 2010
- ↑ "Cristian Sapunaru se une a la plantilla del Real Zaragoza" [Cristian Sapunaru joins Real Zaragoza roster] (in Spanish). Zaragoza's official website. 31 August 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2012.
- ↑ "La Real se aprovecha de un inocente Zaragoza" [Real takes advantage of innocent Zaragoza] (in Spanish). Marca. 16 September 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2012.
- ↑ "Sapu cel galben » Săpunaru a rămas în istoria Primera Division: a depăşit recordul de cartonaşe galbene" [Sapu the yellow » Săpunaru makes history in Primera Division: yellow cards record broken] (in Romanian). Gazeta Sporturilor. 28 May 2013. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
External links
- RomanianSoccer profile and stats
- Stats and profile at Zerozero
- Stats at ForaDeJogo
- Cristian Săpunaru at National-Football-Teams.com
- Cristian Săpunaru – FIFA competition record
- Cristian Săpunaru – UEFA competition record
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