Alexandru Ioniță

Alexandru Cornel Ioniță (; born 14 December 1994) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or a winger for Chinese Super League club Yunnan Yukun.

A youth exponent of Rapid București, Ioniță made his professional debut at age 16. He moved to Astra Giurgiu in 2014, where he won four domestic trophies. Four years later, Ioniță was subject to a €1 million transfer to CFR Cluj, but failed to impose himself and had loan stints at Universitatea Craiova and Astra. In 2021, he returned to Rapid București.

At international level, Ioniță debuted for the Romania senior team in a 3–1 victory against Kazakhstan in September 2017.

Club career Rapid București Born in Bucharest, Ioniță joined the academy of Rapid București at the age of six. On 21 May 2011, at only sixteen years and five months, he made his senior debut in a 1–0 Liga I victory against FC Brașov. In the 2013–14 Liga II, Ioniță made fourteen appearances and six goals in total.

Astra Giurgiu Ioniță moved to Astra Giurgiu during the winter 2014 transfer window, with fellow Liga I clubs Dinamo București and Petrolul Ploiești also interested in signing him. On 15 October 2015, he scored his first goal for Astra in a 3–0 away victory against Viitorul Constanța at the 2015–16 Cupa Ligii.

On 2 May 2016, Ioniță netted twice in a 4–2 home success against Dinamo București as Astra celebrated its first league title. Following the transfer of Constantin Budescu to FCSB in June 2017, Ioniță took over his number 10 shirt. On 13 July that year, he recorded his first UEFA Europa League goal in a 3–1 home defeat against Zira for the second qualifying round.

Ioniță was named the Liga I Player of the Month for November 2017 after scoring in three consecutive league matches, against Universitatea Craiova, Concordia Chiajna and FCSB, respectively. Amid rumours of a transfer to CFR Cluj in early January 2018, Ioniță refused to renew his contract with Astra and was expelled from the first team for an undetermined period.

CFR Cluj On 20 January 2018, Ioniță joined CFR Cluj's training camp in Spain after he was acquired for a rumoured fee of €1 million. Three days later, the move was made official. On 5 February, Ioniță made his competitive debut in a 2–0 league victory against Concordia Chiajna at home. Later that month, he netted in the rebound from his penalty that had been saved by his former Rapid teammate Virgil Drăghia, recording his first goal in a 2–0 away victory against Juventus București.

In July 2019, following a disappointing 2018–19 campaign in which Ioniță only scored two goals from 27 appearances in all competitions, he agreed to a one-year loan at Universitatea Craiova with a purchase option. After failing to gain playing time Craiova as well, the contract was terminated early and he returned to Astra Giurgiu on loan in the beginning of 2020.

In September 2020, the Romanian Anti-Doping Agency handed Ioniță along with two of his Astra teammates a one-year playing ban after they each received intravenous injections of more than 100mL of vitamins within one day. On 7 September 2021, CFR Cluj announced the termination of Ioniță's contract on a mutual agreement.

Return to Rapid București

On 16 September 2021, Ioniță returned for Rapid București as a free agent on a three-year contract. On 17 September, he debuted in a 2–0 victory against his former club CFR Cluj in the Liga I.

Ioniță scored his first goal upon his return on 11 February 2022, equalising late in a 1–1 league draw against Sepsi OSK as his team played 40 minutes with one player less. On 13 March, he opened the scoring in a 3–1 win against Dinamo București, their first Bucharest derby victory in almost fourteen years.

Ioniță regained his goalscoring form in the first part of the 2023–24 season, scoring five goals in 18 league appearances.

Yunnan Yukun On 26 February 2024, Rapid București announced that Ioniță was transferred to China League One side Yunnan Yukun. He scored eight goals in 30 league appearances in 2024, helping the club win the title and gain promotion to the 2025 Chinese Super League.

On 22 February 2025, Ioniță made his Chinese Super League debut for Yunnan Yukun, playing the full match in a 0–2 home defeat to Beijing Guoan. On 28 March, he scored his first top-flight goal and provided an assist in a 4–3 away win over Shenzhen Peng City.

International career In September 2017, Ioniță was selected by the Romania senior team for the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Kazakhstan and Denmark. He debuted in the former match, coming on as an 80th-minute substitute for double goal scorer Constantin Budescu in the 3–1 win in Ploiești.

Personal life Ioniță's father played football in the lower divisions.

Career statistics Club

International

Honours Astra Giurgiu Liga I: 2015–16 Cupa României: 2013–14 Supercupa României: 2014, 2016

CFR Cluj Liga I: 2017–18, 2018–19 Supercupa României: 2018

Yunnan Yukun China League One: 2024

Individual DigiSport Liga I Player of the Month: November 2017