Viorel Kraus

Viorel Kraus (born 5 March 1940) is a former professional footballer who played as a forward for clubs in Romania and Turkey. Later working as a manager, he had three stints at Rapid București as well as in Greece and Saudi Arabia.

Early life Kraus, nicknamed "Neamțul" (The German) due to his Transylvanian Saxon origin, was born on 5 March 1940 in Alba Iulia, Romania. His father, Alfred, worked as a driver at the Luther brewery, while his mother was a pediatric nurse at a children's hospital.

Club career Early career Kraus began his senior career by playing for one and a half years at Soda Ocna Mureș in the third league. Subsequently, he scored a goal against goalkeeper Ion Voinescu to help his side earn a 2–0 victory against rivals Steaua București in the 1960–61 Cupa României semi-finals. In the next edition of the Cupa României, Rapid reached once again the final, this time losing 5–1 to Steaua, but Mihăilescu did not use Kraus in the game. In the following years, he helped the club win two Balkans Cups.

Argeș Pitești In 1967, shortly after winning the league title with Rapid, Kraus moved to Argeș Pitești where he played alongside his idol Nicolae Dobrin. In the next edition of the same competition, he played four matches, helping his side eliminate Leixões in the first round before they were defeated by Göztepe in the second round.

Altay Izmir In 1969, alongside his former Rapid teammate Ion Motroc, Kraus went to play in the Turkish First Football League for Altay Izmir under coach Ted Dumitru. The club finished in third place in the league during the 1969–70 season, with Kraus appearing in 24 league matches with one goal scored.

Sportul Studențesc In 1970, Kraus returned to Romania to play for Divizia B side Sportul Studențesc, which was coached by Ion Motroc. After two more seasons with Sportul, Kraus ended his career in 1974, totaling 167 Divizia A matches with 30 goals. Later, in 1967, he made an appearance for Romania B in a 2–2 draw against Poland.

Managerial career Kraus began his coaching career by leading Rapid București during the 1981–82 Divizia B season. Subsequently, he coached Greek side Makedonikos, where one of his players was compatriot Marius Ciugarin. He led them for the first 25 rounds of the 1982–83 Alpha Ethniki season before Michalis Bellis replaced him, and the team eventually suffered relegation to the second league.

Kraus began the 1984–85 Divizia A campaign as Victor Stănculescu's assistant at Rapid, before stepping in as head coach for the second half of the season. He coached Al Raed during the 2003–04 season and Al Taawon the following season, with both stints in the second league.

Personal life His son, who is also named Viorel Kraus, played football for Rapid București and Sportul Studențesc. Moving to the United States at age 21, Kraus Jr. established the "World Soccer School" for young players. He later founded "InterFC", a club that won several Arizona state championships. Subsequently, he returned to Romania and founded the "VK Soccer" club which played in the Romanian lower leagues.

Honours Rapid București Divizia A: 1966–67 Cupa României runner-up: 1960–61, 1961–62 Balkans Cup: 1963–64, 1964–66 Sportul Studențesc Divizia B: 1971–72