sport.wikisort.org - Athlete

Virgil Dridea (17 November 1940 – 29 May 2022),[1] also known as Puiu Dridea, was a Romanian football player and manager. He played as a midfielder in 82 matches for Petrolul Ploiești and made his Divizia A debut on 24 August 1958 for the Yellow Wolves in a 3–0 victory against Jiul Petroșani.[2] In 1968, Dridea transferred to Metalul Plopeni, where in 1970 he started his football manager career, as the assistant coach of Gheorghe Bărbulescu.[2]

Virgil Dridea

Dridea in 1966
Personal information
Full name	Virgil Sebastian Dridea
Date of birth	(1940-11-17)17 November 1940
Place of birth	Ploiești, Romania
Date of death	29 May 2022(2022-05-29) (aged 81)
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
1950–1958	Petrolul Ploiești
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1958–1968	Petrolul Ploiești	82
1959–1962	→ Știința București (loan)
1968–1970	Metalul Plopeni
Teams managed
1970–1978	Metalul Plopeni (assistant)
1978–1983	Metalul Plopeni
1983–1985	Petro do Huambo
1985–1988	Prahova Ploiești
1988–1992	Petrolul Ploiești
1992–1993	Syria
1994–1995	Dacia Unirea Brăila
1995–1996	Metalul Plopeni
1996–1997	Al-Jaish
1997–1999	Midia Năvodari
1999–2000	Petrolul Ploiești
2000–2001	Midia Năvodari
2001–2002	Cimentul Fieni
2002–2003	Chindia Târgoviște
2003–2004	Metalul Plopeni
2004	Petrolul Ploiești
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

"Puiu" Dridea was a well-known manager in Romania where he managed several clubs such as Metalul Plopeni, Petrolul Ploiești, Prahova Ploiești, Dacia Unirea Brăila and Chindia Târgoviște, among others. He also coached in Angola and Syria, where he managed Petro do Huambo, Al-Jaish and the Syria national team.[3][4]

His brother, Mircea Dridea, was also a footballer and manager.[5]

Honours

Player

Petrolul Ploiești

• Divizia A: 1958–59, 1965–66
• Cupa României: 1962–63

References

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