FC Astra Giurgiu

Asociația Fotbal Club Astra Giurgiu (Romanian pronunciation: [ˈastra ˈd͡ʒjurd͡ʒju]), commonly known as Astra Giurgiu, or simply as Astra, is a Romanian professional football club based in the city of Giurgiu, Giurgiu County, currently playing in the Liga I.

Astra Giurgiu
Full nameAsociația Fotbal Club
Astra Giurgiu
Nickname(s)
  • Astralii
  • Giurgiuvenii (The Giurgiu People)
  • Dracii negri (The Black Devils)
Short nameAstra
Founded18 September 1921 (1921-09-18)
as Clubul Sportiv Astra-Română[1]
GroundMarin Anastasovici
Capacity8,200[2]
OwnerIoan Niculae
ChairmanDănuț Coman
ManagerBogdan Andone
LeagueLiga I
2019–20Liga I, 3rd of 14
WebsiteClub website

Founded in 1921 in Ploiești, Prahova County, as Clubul Sportiv Astra-Română,[1] the club spent the majority of its history in the lower leagues. Only after the late 1990s the club began to achieve success, with a premiere promotion to the top of the Romanian football league system in 1998 under the ownership of businessman Ioan Niculae. In September 2012, the team was moved from Ploiești to Giurgiu.[3] At the end of 2015–16 season, the side led by head coach Marius Șumudică won a historic championship title, at the same time ending a three-year successful run of FC Steaua București.[4]

Domestically, Astra's major honours include one Liga I, one Cupa României and two Supercupa României. On the international stage, their best performance is reaching UEFA Europa League's round of 32 in the 2016–17 season. All of the domestic and continental performances came after the Giurgiu relocation.

The colours of the club are white and black, hence the old nickname Dracii negri (The Black Devils). Red, which is present on the current crest, was worn on many occasions on away kits.

History
Name changes
Year
Name
1921 Clubul Sportiv Astra-Română
1934 Astra Română Câmpina
1937 Astra Română Ploiești
1938 Colombia Ploiești
1945 Astra Română Ploiești
1959 Rafinorul Ploiești
1990 CS Astra Ploiești
1996 AS Danubiana Ploiești
1998 SC FC Astra Ploiești
2005 CSM Ploiești
2007 FC Ploiești
2009 FC Astra Ploiești
2012 FC Astra Giurgiu

Founding, early years and lower divisions (1921–1996)

On 18 September 1921, the weekly newspaper Ecoul Sportiv announced the founding of the Clubul Sportiv Astra-Română ("Astra-Romanian Sports Club") by the Astra-Română Society, an oil-company owned by Henri Deterding and based in Prahova and composed of English, American and Dutch officials.[1][5]

Initially, the club consisted of several football sides based in towns from the entire county. In the summer of 1934, the refinery organised the inaugural edition of a tournament open for all the Astra teams, called the Astra Societies Cup. The matches were played in the town of Moreni. At the time, the refinery had only one team, Astra Română Câmpina, that was playing in the district championship. In order to make the cup more attractive, the society created three new football sides for the event: Astra Română Moreni, Astra Română Boldești and Astra Română Unirea Hârsa. After the 1937 edition of the Cup, the society decided to merge all of its Prahova teams and thus created Astra Română Ploiești on 29 May 1937. The team was registered in the district championship. Just a few months after the team's foundation, the society changed its name to Columbia and moved it to a ground located near the society's headquarters, in Câmpina. In May 1945, Astra Română Ploiești was reformed and played its home matches on the old Columbia Stadium, a stadium that still exists today in Ploiești and is used as a training ground by the team.

In the summer of 1992, Astra were promoted for the first time to the Divizia C. The following seasons it finished 6, 12, 3 and 14 in the championship.

Ascent under Niculae's ownership (1996–2013)

In the summer of 1996, the club merged with Danubiana București, it changed its name to Danubiana Ploiești, and played for the first time in the Divizia B. After one season the club changed its name back to Astra. Since that year, Ioan Niculae has been the owner of the team. In 1998, Astra were promoted to the Divizia A for the first time. They played at this level for five consecutive seasons, until 2003, when it merged with Petrolul Ploiești.[6] Two years of pause pass for Astra, until 2005, when Ioan Niculae founded once again the club directly in the Liga II. It was relegated to the Liga III after only one season. In the summer of 2007, under the name of FC Ploiești, the team promoted back to the Liga II. In 2009, after six years, it finally promoted back to Liga I, with promotion achieved at the end of the 2008–09 season. It changed its name back to the traditional Astra Ploiești and the black and white colours were brought back, hence the team's old nickname, "The Black Devils".[7]

After 91 years in Ploiești, in September 2012, the club moved to Giurgiu.[3] The last match played in the Astra Stadium was on 2 September 2012, against Bucharest giants Dinamo București, won by Astra 1–0. The first game played on the Marin Anastasovici Stadium was on 23 September 2012, against Gaz Metan Mediaș. Astra won 4–0.

It qualified for the first time to the UEFA Europa League at the end of the 2012–13 Liga I season, after finishing 4th in the table.

The 2013–14 season was the most successful season in the club's history, reaching 2nd place in Liga I, losing the title by only five points to Steaua București and winning the Romanian Cup on penalties against the same team, Steaua. One month later they defeated Steaua București on penalties again, and won the Romanian Supercup.

First European participations and Șumudică era (2013–2017)

Astra Giurgiu played its first European match ever in first qualification round of UEFA Europa League against Domžale, winning 1–0 in the first leg. In the second leg in Bucharest, Astra won 2–0 and qualified. In the second qualification round, Astra draw 1–1 with Omonia in the first leg in Bucharest and beat 2–1[8] in the second leg in Nicosia to advance.[9] Seeded team after eliminating Omonia, Astra was drawn in third qualification round with Trenčín and qualified after winning 3–1 the first leg in Dubnica nad Váhom and drawing 2–2 in the second leg in Bucharest. In play-off, Astra faced the very first European defeat in a 0–2 against Maccabi Haifa in the first leg in Haifa, thus being eliminated after drawing 1–1 in the second leg in Bucharest.[10]

Astra qualified directly in the third qualifying round after winning the Romanian Cup and met Slovan Liberec, winning both legs 3–0 in Giurgiu and 3–2 in Liberec, this time being the first European match to take place in Giurgiu. In the play-off round, Astra met Olympique Lyonnais, defeating them away in Lyon in a 2–1 win, with Kehinde Fatai and Constantin Budescu scoring the goals of victory.[11] In Giurgiu, Lyon won 1–0 but Astra Giurgiu went on to the group stage phase due to the away goals rule. They were subsequently drawn in Group D alongside Red Bull Salzburg, Celtic and Dinamo Zagreb.[12] Astra began their group stage adventure with a harmful 1–5 defeat at Stadion Maksimir in Zagreb against Croatian champions Dinamo, ending with Aurelian Chițu scoring their first goal in the group stages of a European cup. On 2 October 2014, Astra played Red Bull Salzburg one of the most important matches held on Marin Anastasovici Stadium in Giurgiu. Astra took the 1–0 lead with Takayuki Seto's goal, but were stunned by Jonatan Soriano's winner, losing 1–2. On matchday 3, Astra faced Celtic at Glasgow in a match which ended 1–2. On matchday 4, Astra hold Celtic in a 1–1 draw at Giurgiu, with William Amorim scoring the equaliser that brought their first group stage point. On matchday 5, Astra won 1–0 against Dinamo Zagreb with Sadat Bukari's winner, and secured its first ever victory in the Europa League group stages.[13] Astra's Europa League campaign concluded at Red Bull Arena in Salzburg with another heavy 1–5 defeat to Red Bull. Astra ended in fourth place with four points, behind Salzburg (16 points), Celtic (8) and Dinamo (6).

Marius Șumudică led Astra to the 2015–16 Liga I title, the first in the history of the club.

On 28 April 2015, Marius Șumudică was appointed as the new head coach, following Dorinel Munteanu's resignation.[14] It would be Sumudica's third term at the club, following two short spells in 2009 and 2011. His first game in charge was a 2–1 away victory against rivals Petrolul Ploiești. He eventually led the team to a fourth-place finish, assuring qualification for the 2015–16-second round of the UEFA Europa League.

In the second round of the Europa League, Astra were paired with Inverness Caledonian Thistle, which resulted in a 1–0 Astra win on aggregate after a goal from Constantin Budescu.[15] The third round proved to be extremely difficult, however, as Astra was drawn with English club West Ham United. A surprising 2–2 draw at London, followed by a 2–1 victory in Giurgiu,[16][17] qualified Astra for the play-off round, where they faced Dutch club AZ. A 3–2 home victory for Giurgiu was not enough to see Astra qualified to the group stage as AZ won the reverse match in Alkmaar 2–0, thus ending the club's European campaign.[18]

In the domestic league, Astra managed to impress. Despite having a poor start which included a severe 1–5 defeat from vice-champions ASA Targu Mures, the Astralii managed to finish the regular seasons champions. During this time, however, manager Marius Șumudică was convicted of betting on domestic matches,[19] prompting his suspension by Romanian FA for the remainder of the season. On appeal, Șumudică managed to reduce his suspension to two months, and also begin to apply at the start of the 2016–17 Liga I.[20] On 1 May 2016, after a draw between FC Steaua and Pandurii Tg. Jiu, Astra Giurgiu won the 2015–16 Liga I.[4] This was Șumudică's first domestic title, and also made Giurgiu the 13th Romanian city to have won a national title, after Bucharest, Timișoara, Ploiești, Arad, Craiova, Cluj-Napoca, Pitești, Oradea, Brașov, Reșița, Urziceni and Galați. Astra also later won the 2016 Supercup against CFR Cluj.[21]

Astra qualified for the UEFA Champions League, but were quickly eliminated by Danish side Copenhagen.[22] Astra reached the play-off round of the 2016–17 UEFA Europa League and faced West Ham, which they also met – and defeated – one year prior. The club defeated West Ham 0–1[23] in London and reached the group stage of the Europa League, where they were drawn in Group E alongside Roma, Viktoria Plzeň and Austria Wien.[24] Despite having zero points after two rounds, Astra Giurgiu managed to defeat Viktoria Plzeň and Austria Wien in away matches; this, in addition to a 0–0 draw with Roma and Austria Wien's failure against Plzeň secured Astra's place in the tournament's round of 32, where they faced Genk. A 2–2 draw at Giurgiu followed by a defeat, 0–1 in Belgium ended Astra Giurgiu's best European campaign in history.[25]

In the league, Astra had a very disappointing campaign, struggling for the majority of the regular season in the second half of the table. However, a fantastic streak of 8 consecutive wins[26] allowed the Giurgiu club to finish 3rd in the regular season, and to qualify for the play-offs of 2016–17 Liga 1. The good form didn't last however, as they managed to gather just 5 points in the play-offs and eventually finished 6th. On 27 May, Astra lost the Romanian Cup Final against FC Voluntari after a penalty shootout,[27] however because FC Voluntari didn't apply early enough for a European License to participate in the 2017–18 Europa League, the vacant spot was given to Astra, thus qualifying yet again in Europe.

Recent history (2017–)

In the summer of 2017, head coach Șumudică left Astra Giurgiu after his contract expired and was replaced by Edward Iordănescu, and also the first-team squad was almost entirely changed.[28][29]

Crest and colours

Emblem

The present crest was adopted in July 2009, following the team's promotion from Liga II. The design is based on a classical template, and is characterized by the same black and white stripes which could be found on the team's shirts. The numerous stars which adorn the crest have their origin in the club's name, with Astra (like Steaua) being a Romanian word which translates as "The Star".

Kit

Currently, Astra Giurgiu's primary colors are white and black, although the kit design also included red on many occasions, especially on away outfits.

Grounds
Marin Anastasovici Stadium
Main articles: Stadionul Marin Anastasovici and Stadionul Astra

Astra plays its home matches in Giurgiu at the Marin Anastasovici Stadium, which has a current capacity of approximately 8,500 spectators.[2] With the club having moved here since September 2012, the former Astra Stadium in Ploiești now acts as a training ground.

Support

Rivalries
Main article: Former Ploiești derby

After Astra's first promotion to the Divizia A in the summer of 1998, its fans engaged in a grudge with their cross-town rivals Petrolul Ploiești. Often, the matches between Astra and Petrolul ended with clashes between the supporters. Most Astra fans consider Petrolul as their main rivals, however Lupii galbeni regard Rapid București as their principal arch-enemies. The rivalry was kept despite Astra's move to Giurgiu,[30] and the match is sometimes referred to as Fostul derby al Ploieștiului (English: Former Ploiești derby).

Honours

Domestic

Leagues

Cups

Rankings

This is the UEFA club's coefficient as of August 2020:[31]

Pos. Team Points
129 Arouca9,889
130 Belenenses9,889
131 Astra9,500
132 Arsenal Tula9,109
133 Ufa9,109

Players

First team squad
As of 15 March 2020[32]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
1 GK David Lazar
3 DF Risto Radunović
4 DF Daniel Graovac
5 DF Constantin Dima
6 DF Gabriel Simion (on loan from FCSB)
7 FW Denis Alibec (Captain)
8 MF Takayuki Seto
10 MF Ciprian Biceanu
11 MF Valentin Gheorghe
13 DF Dinu Graur
14 FW Raoul Baicu
17 FW Goodness Ajayi
18 GK Mirel Bolboașă
19 FW Kehinde Fatai
No. Position Player
20 DF David Bruno
21 MF Ljuban Crepulja
22 MF Gabriel Șerban
23 DF Alexandru Dandea
29 DF Andrei Trușescu
30 DF Gabriel Tamaș
31 MF Alexandru Ioniță (on loan from CFR Cluj)
33 GK Georgi Kitanov
50 MF Constantin Budescu
77 MF Albert Stahl
88 FW Julien Bègue
90 MF Mihai Răduț
96 MF Silviu Balaure
99 MF Dragoș Gheorghe

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
15 MF Robert Boboc (to Dunărea Călărași)
95 MF Romario Moise (to UTA Arad)
98 FW Raul Gavîrliță (to Metaloglobus București)
— GK Miguel Santos (to Academica Clinceni)
No. Position Player
— DF Radu Crișan (to Rapid București)
— MF Radu Chiriac (to Metaloglobus București)
— FW Serge Ekollo (to Petrolul Ploiești)

Club officials

Shirt sponsors and manufacturers
Period Kit manufacturer Period Shirt partner
2009–2012 Adidas 2009–2012 InterAgro
2012–2016 Puma 2012–2016 InterAgro
2016– Joma 2016–2017 Tinmar
2017 Maurer Imobiliare
2018–

Tinmar Pambac

Records and statistics

League history
Season League Pos. M W D L GS GA Pts. Notes
Before 1992
Data unavailable
1992–93 Liga III 6 3819415 575142
1993–94 Liga III 12 3614616 404734
1994–95 Liga III 3 3621312 683566
1995–96 Liga III 14 3615318 515248 Merged with Danubiana București, who won the promotion to the 2nd league.[36]
1996–97 Liga II 8 3414911 423151 Played under the name of AS Danubiana Ploiești.[36]
1997–98 Liga II 1 342842 802088
1998–99 Liga I 10 3413714 403846
1999–00 Liga I 10 3413813 434147
2000–01 Liga I 10 3011712 413640
2001–02 Liga I 12 3091011 292837
2002–03 Liga I 9 3013314 424242 Changed its name to Petrolul Ploiești.[37]
2005–06 Liga II 10 3012414 455040
2006–07 Liga III 5 3215710 484052
2007–08 Liga III 1 343121 831895 Promoted under the name of CSM FC Ploiești.[38]
2008–09 Liga II 2 302145 623267 Promoted under the name of FC Ploiești.[39]
2009–10 Liga I 14 3481214 334536
2010–11 Liga I 11 3410159 363045
2011–12 Liga I 12 3411815 364341
2012–13 Liga I 4 341798 643760 Qualified for the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League
2013–14 Liga I 2 342266 702872 Qualified for the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League
2014–15 Liga I 4 3415127 532757 Qualified for the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League
2015–16 Liga I 1 3621105 623873 Qualified for the 2016–17 UEFA Champions League
2016–17 Liga I 6 3614715 424549 Qualified for the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League
2017–18 Liga I 5 3616713 413955
2018–19 Liga I 5 3613914 424348
2019-20 Liga I 3 341699 503757
Champion Runner-up Promoted Relegated

Cup history
Season Opponent 1st Leg 2nd Leg Cup Round
Before 1996
Data unavailable
1996–97 Farul Constanța 1–2 Last 32
1998–99 UM Timișoara 0–2 Last 32
1999–00 Oțelul Galați 1–2 (a.e.t.) Last 16
2000–01 Metrom Brașov 1–2 (a.e.t.) Last 32
2001–02 Rapid București 2–2 0–0 Semi-finals
2002–03 Dinamo București 2–1 1–3 (a.e.t.) Semi-finals
2005–06 Chimia Brazi 1–2 5th Round
2006–07 Petrolistul Boldești 0–3 3rd round
2007–08 FCM Câmpina 3–4 4th round
2008–09 Universitatea Craiova 1–3 Last 32
2009–10 Dinamo București 1–2 Quarter-finals
2010–11 Rapid București 0–2 Last 16
2011–12 Petrolul Ploiești 0–1 Last 16
2012–13 CFR Cluj 0–0 0–2 Semi-finals
2013–14 Steaua București 0–0 (a.e.t.) 4–2 (PK) Final
2014–15 CS Mioveni 1–3 Last 32
2015–16 Dinamo București 1–2 Quarter-finals
2016–17 FC Voluntari 1–1 (a.e.t.) 3–5 (PK) Final
2017–18 Gaz Metan Mediaș 0–1 Quarter-finals
2018–19 Viitorul Constanța 1–2 (a.e.t.) Final
2019–20 Sepsi OSK 2–4 Last 16

League Cup history
Season Opponent 1st Leg 2nd Leg Cup Round
Before 2014
The competition had a friendly character
2014–15 Steaua București 0–3 2–0 Semi-finals
2015–16 Steaua București 0–1 0–2 Semi-finals
2016–17 Dinamo București 2–5 (a.e.t.) Quarter-finals

European Cups history
Main article: FC Astra Giurgiu in European football
Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2013–14 UEFA Europa League 1Q Domžale 2–0 1–0 3–0
2Q Omonia 1–1 2–1 3–2
3Q AS Trenčín 2–2 3–1 5–3
PO Maccabi Haifa 1–1 0–2 1–3
2014–15 UEFA Europa League 3Q Slovan Liberec 3–0 3–2 6–2
PO Lyon 0–1 2–1 2–2 (a)
Group D Red Bull Salzburg 1–2 1–5 4th
Celtic 1–1 1–2
Dinamo Zagreb 1–0 1–5
2015–16 UEFA Europa League 2Q Inverness Caledonian Thistle 0–0 1–0 1–0
3Q West Ham United 2–1 2–2 4–3
PO AZ 3–2 0–2 3–4
2016–17 UEFA Champions League 3Q Copenhagen 1–1 0–3 1–4
UEFA Europa League PO West Ham United 1–1 1–0 2–1
Group E Viktoria Plzeň 1–1 2–1 2nd
Roma 0–0 0–4
Austria Wien 2–3 2–1
R32 Genk 2–2 0–1 2–3
2017–18 UEFA Europa League 2Q Zira 3–1 0–0 3–1
3Q Oleksandriya 0–0 0–1 0–1
Notes
  • 1Q: First qualifying round
  • 2Q: Second qualifying round
  • 3Q: Third qualifying round
  • PO: Play-off round

European cups all-time statistics
As of 9 March 2018
Competition S P W D L GF GA GD
UEFA Champions League 1201114−3
UEFA Europa League 5381512114850−2
Total6401513124954−5

Notable former players

The footballers enlisted below have had international cap(s) for their respective countries at junior and/or senior level and/or more than 100 caps for FC Astra Giurgiu.

Notable former managers
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References
  1. "Istoric" [History] (in Romanian). FC Astra Giurgiu. Archived from the original on 25 April 2016.
  2. "Astra are stadion de Europa League!" [Astra has a European stadium!] (in Romanian). Giurgiuveanul. 3 July 2014. Archived from the original on 4 November 2014.
  3. "Astra se mută la Giurgiu, iar Ploieștiul rămâne doar o amintire! Ioan Niculae: "Vrem să inaugurăm arena pe 20 septembrie!". Ȋmbunatățiri la arena giurgiuveană" [Astra moves to Giurgiu, and Ploiești only remains a memory! Ioan Niculae: "We want to open the stadium on September 20!"]. Sport Total FM. 6 September 2012. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012.
  4. "Marius Şumudică a scris istorie! Astra Giurgiu este a 24-a campioană a României" [Marius Șumudică made history! Astra is Romania's 24th champion] (in Romanian). DigiSport. 1 May 2016. Archived from the original on 30 July 2017.
  5. "Astra – din 1921" [Astra – since 1921]. Ziarul Prahova (in Romanian). 1 February 2013. Archived from the original on 20 April 2014.
  6. "Aici este Petrolul Ploiești!" [Here lies Petrolul Ploiești!] (in Romanian). România Liberă. Archived from the original on 20 April 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2009.
  7. "A reȋnviat Astra!" [Astra came back to life!] (in Romanian). liga2.ro. 13 June 2009. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2009.
  8. "Omonia 1–2 Astra". UEFA.com. 25 July 2013. Archived from the original on 6 March 2017. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  9. "VIDEO Budescu Show! Atacantul Astrei a eliminat-o pe Omonia cu o dublă de senzaţie, 2–1" [VIDEO Budescu Show! Astra's attacking midfielder eliminated Omonia with an exciting double, 2–1]. Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). 27 July 2013. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  10. "Astra – Maccabi Haifa 1–1. Giurgiuvenii părăsesc UEFA Europa League" [Astra – Maccabi Haifa 1–1. The Giurgiu People leave UEFA Europa League] (in Romanian). Digi Sport. 29 August 2013. Archived from the original on 1 September 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  11. "Lyon 1–2 Astra". UEFA.com. 21 August 2014. Archived from the original on 23 December 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  12. "Europa League, tragerea la sorti. Steaua, in grupa cu Dinamo Kiev, Rio Ave si Aalborg. Astra va intalni Salzburg, Celtic si Dinamo Zagreb" [Europa League draw. Steaua will be in the group with Dinamo Kiev, Rio Ave and Aalborg. Astra will meet Salzburg, Celtic and Dinamo Zagreb] (in Romanian). HotNews.ro. 29 August 2014. Archived from the original on 7 September 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  13. "Astra obţine prima victorie în grupele Europa League, 1–0 cu Dinamo Zagreb, şi urcă pe locul 3 în grupă" [Astra obtains its first victory in the Europa League group stage, 1–0 against Dinamo Zagreb, and reaches the third place in the table]. Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). 27 November 2014. Archived from the original on 30 December 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  14. "Şumudică este noul antrenor al Astrei, după demisia lui Dorinel Munteanu: "Vreau să ne calificăm în Europa"" [Şumudică is Astra's new coach, after Dorinel Munteanu's resignation: "I want us to qualify for European cups"] (in Romanian). Digi Sport. 28 April 2015. Archived from the original on 1 May 2015. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  15. "Astra se califică în turul trei preliminar după 1–0 la general cu Inverness" [Astra qualifies for the third round after 1–0 on aggregate against Inverness]. Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). 23 July 2015. Archived from the original on 9 August 2015. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  16. "Astra Giurgiu 2–1 West Ham". BBC Sport. 6 August 2015. Archived from the original on 18 January 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  17. "Astra – West Ham 2–1. Dubla lui Budescu i-a calificat pe giurgiuveni în play-off-ul Europa League" [Astra – West Ham 2–1. Budescu's "double" qualifies the team for the Europa League play-off round] (in Romanian). Digi Sport. 6 August 2015. Archived from the original on 14 November 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  18. "Alkmaar – Astra 2–0. Gafa lui Lung jr. a lăsat România fără nicio echipă în grupele cupelor europene" [Astra – Alkmaar 2–0. Lung Jr.'s mistake leaves Romania without any teams in the European cups' group stage] (in Romanian). Digi Sport. 27 August 2015. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  19. "Marius Sumudica, prins si el la pariuri? Antrenorul Astrei va merge astazi la Comisia de Disciplina a FRF!" [Șumudică, also caught betting? Astra's head coach will go to FRF's discipline committee today] (in Romanian). SportTotal FM. 10 February 2016. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  20. "Pedeapsa lui Şumudică, redusă de la 6 la 2 luni: sancţiunea intră în vigoare începând cu sezonul 2016–2017! Reacţia antrenorului" [Șumudică's sanction, reduced from 6 to 2 months: the suspension will be applied starting with the 2016–2017 season! The coach's reaction] (in Romanian). ProSport. 8 March 2016. Archived from the original on 13 June 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  21. "Astra Giurgiu a câștigat Supercupa României, după 1–0 cu CFR Cluj" [Astra Giurgiu won the Romanian Supercup, after a 1–0 victory over CFR Cluj] (in Romanian). Agerpres. 16 July 2016. Archived from the original on 18 July 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  22. "Astra, eliminata din Liga Campionilor dupa o infrangere la scor la Copenhaga" [Astra, eliminated from the Champions League after a harsh defeat in Copenhagen]. Ziare.com (in Romanian). 3 August 2016. Archived from the original on 21 March 2017. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  23. "EXTRAORDINAR! Astra elimina din nou West Ham si se califica in grupele Europa League! West Ham 0–1 Astra. Teixeira a marcat, Lung, EROU" [INCREDIBLE! Astra defeats West Ham again and qualifies for the Europa League group stage! West Ham 0–1 Astra] (in Romanian). Sport.ro. 25 August 2016. Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  24. "Steaua și Astra și-au aflat adversarele din grupele Europa League" [Steaua and Astra Europa League groups revealed] (in Romanian). Digi24. 26 August 2016. Archived from the original on 2 November 2016. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
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  26. "Astra Giurgiu a ajuns la 8 victorii consecutive în Liga întâi". radiocluj.ro. 7 March 2017. Archived from the original on 8 March 2017. Retrieved 1 May 2018.
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