Andrei Mărgăritescu

Andrei Silviu Margaritescu (born 1 January 1980) is a former Romanian professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.

Club career Mărgăritescu, nicknamed China, was born in Pitești on 1 January 1980 and began playing junior-level football at local club Argeș, where he worked with coach Cristian Gheorghe. He made his Divizia A debut at age 19 on 2 November 1999, playing for Rapid București under coach Mircea Lucescu in a 2–1 victory over FC Brașov. After receiving a red card in a game against Steaua București, Lucescu gave him the captain's armband in the following game in order to make him more responsible and less aggressive in his play. The second was the 2005 Supercupa României as he played the entire match in the 3–2 victory against rivals Steaua București. Andone also used him in seven games during the 2005–06 UEFA Cup campaign when the team eliminated Everton with a historical 5–2 on aggregate, reaching the group stage. Afterwards, he helped Dinamo win the 2006–07 Liga I title, being used by coach Mircea Rednic in 31 games in which he scored one goal. Subsequently, Dinamo aimed to reach the 2007–08 Champions League group stage, with Mărgăritescu playing in the second leg of the third qualifying round against Lazio Roma, which was eventually lost with 4–2 on aggregate.

In 2008, Mărgăritescu went to play alongside fellow Romanians Florentin Petre and Daniel Pancu in Russia for Terek Grozny. He made his Russian Premier League debut on 13 July 2008 when coach Vyacheslav Hroznyi used him as a starter in a 0–0 draw against FC Moscow. He returned to Dinamo in December 2009, where he stayed for one and a half years. He made his debut on 6 September 2006 when he substituted for Laurențiu Roșu in the 90th minute of a 2–0 away victory against Albania. His second game was a 2–0 away victory against Luxembourg and his final match was the second leg against Albania, a 6–1 home victory.

On 25 March 2008, Mărgăritescu was decorated by the president of Romania, Traian Băsescu, for his performance in the Euro 2008 qualifiers, where Romania managed to qualify to the final tournament. He received Medalia "Meritul Sportiv" – ("The Sportive Merit" Medal) class III.

International stats

Controversy On 27 June 2014, Mărgăritescu received a three-year suspended sentence for buying a car, knowing it was stolen.

Honours Rapid București Supercupa României: 1999 Dinamo București Liga I: 2006–07 Cupa României: 2004–05 Supercupa României: 2005