Cătălin Hîldan Explained

Cătălin Hîldan
Fullname:Cătălin George Hîldan
Birth Date:3 February 1976
Birth Place:Brănești, Ilfov, Romania
Death Place:Oltenița, Romania
Height:1.76m
Position:Midfielder
Youthyears1:1986–1994
Youthclubs1:Dinamo București
Years1:1994–2000
Years2:1995–1996
Clubs2:Oțelul Târgoviște (loan)
Caps1:138
Goals1:6
Caps2:13
Goals2:1
Totalcaps:151
Totalgoals:7
Nationalyears1:1999–2000
Nationalteam1:Romania
Nationalcaps1:8
Nationalgoals1:1

Cătălin George Hîldan (3 February 1976 – 5 October 2000) was a Romanian professional footballer who played as a midfielder.

Club career

Cătălin Hîldan first came into contact with sports at the age of eight at the rugby club Olimpia together with his older brother Cristian.[1] Two years later, in the summer of 1986, he joined football club Dinamo București along with Florentin Petre, Mihai Tararache and others.[1] His first match for Dinamo was on 2 October 1994 in a Divizia A derby against Steaua București which ended with a 2–0 loss. After a couple of months he was loaned to Oțelul Târgoviște, where he helped the team win promotion to the second division and then to the first division.[1] He was recalled to Dinamo by coach Cornel Dinu.[1] [2] In a couple of years he became the team's captain.[3] [4] [5] In the 1999–2000 season, Hîldan played 29 league games in which he scored one goal, helping Dinamo win the league title for the first time in nine years, which was won mathematically after a 3–2 victory against Steaua, also in the same season, he scored the second goal of the 2–0 victory in the 2000 Cupa României final against Universitatea Craiova.[6] [7] He played a total of 138 matches in which he scored 6 goals in Divizia A, also appearing in 11 matches without scoring in European competitions.

International career

Cătălin Hîldan played 8 friendly games and scored one goal for Romania, making his debut on 3 March 1999 when coach Victor Pițurcă introduced him in the 85th minute to replace Gheorghe Popescu in a friendly which ended with a 2–0 victory against Estonia.[8] [9] He scored his only goal for the national team in a 1–1 against Georgia and played his last game on 3 June 2000 in a 2–1 victory against Greece.[8] Hîldan was a part of Romania's squad at the Euro 2000 final tournament, but did not play.[1]

International goals

Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Hîldan goal.[8]

Death

Cătălin Hîldan died on 5 October 2000, while playing in a friendly match between Dinamo and Șantierul Naval Oltenița, having a stroke in the 74th minute of the game and fell to the ground.[1] [10] [11] Before his death he was nicknamed "The only captain" by Dinamo's fans, a nickname that became more popular after his death and his number, 11, was retired by Dinamo in his honor.[1] [3] [12] [13] [14] [15] The north stand of the Dinamo Stadium is named "Peluza Cătălin Hîldan" (Cătălin Hîldan Stand), in his honor, also the Stadionul Cătălin Hîldan from his native Brănești is named after him.[3] [12] In 2006, he was posthumously named one of the 100 Greatest Romanians in a nationwide poll.[16]

Honours

Oțelul Târgoviște

1995–96

1994–95Dinamo București

1999–00

1999–00

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 19 ani de la dispariția lui Cătălin Hîldan, "Unicul Căpitan". Zi tristă pentru întreaga suflare dinamovistă. Digisport.ro. Romanian . 19 years since the disappearance of Cătălin Hîldan, "The Only Captain". Sad day for the whole Dinamo breath. 5 October 2019 . 19 November 2021.
  2. Web site: 13 ani fără Cătălin Hîldan. Cum şi-l amintesc foştii colegi pe "Unicul Căpitan". Gsp.ro. Romanian . 13 years without Cătălin Hîldan. How do former colleagues remember" The Only Captain ". 4 October 2013 . 19 November 2021.
  3. Web site: Cătălin Hîldan, o legendă încă vie pentru Dinamo. Adevarul.ro. Romanian . Cătălin Hîldan, a legend still alive for Dinamo. 5 October 2012 . 19 November 2021.
  4. Web site: 20 de ani fara unicul capitan suflarea dinamovista il comemoreaza astazi pe Catalin Hildan. Eurosport.ro. Romanian . 20 years without the only captain, the Dinamo supporters commemorates Catalin Hildan today. 5 October 2020 . 19 November 2021.
  5. Web site: 6 declarații despre 6 poze celebre cu regretatul Cătălin Hîldan. 2000-2014: 14 ani de la dispariția "Unicului Căpitan". Prosport.ro. Romanian . 6 statements about 6 famous pictures with the late Cătălin Hîldan. 2000-2014: 14 years since the disappearance of the "Single Captain". 5 October 2014 . 19 November 2021.
  6. Web site: Dinamo a batut Steaua cu 3-2: super goluri Danciulescu si Mihalcea! VIDEO. Sport.ro. Romanian . Dinamo beat Steaua 3-2: super goals Danciulescu and Mihalcea! VIDEO. 16 March 2010 . 19 November 2021.
  7. Web site: Romanian Cup – Season 1999–2000. RomanianSoccer. 19 November 2021.
  8. Web site: Cătălin Hîldan . European Football. 19 November 2021.
  9. Web site: Romania – Estonia 2:0 . European Football. 19 November 2021.
  10. Web site: Povestea morții simbolului lui Dinamo. A simțit Hîldan că i se apropie sfârșitul? "Nu știu ce e cu mine, mă simt obosit, greoi. Nu știu ce bagă ăștia în noi". Prosport.ro. Romanian . The story of Dinamo's symbol death. Did Hildan feel that his end was near? "I don't know what's wrong with me, I feel tired, heavy. I don't know what they give us". 5 October 2015 . 19 November 2021.
  11. Web site: 10 ani de la moartea lui Catalin Hildan! Toata echipa merge la Branesti!. Sport.ro. Romanian . 10 years since the death of Catalin Hildan! The whole team goes to Branesti!. 5 October 2010 . 19 November 2021.
  12. Web site: Brănești, comuna blestemată. De la Cătălin Hîldan, de la a cărui moarte se împlinesc 17 ani, la defuncta echipă de fotbal Victoria!. Libertatea.ro. Romanian . Branesti, the cursed commune. From Cătălin Hîldan, whose death is 17 years old, to the late Victoria football team!. 5 October 2017 . 19 November 2021.
  13. Web site: Cătălin Hîldan, unicul căpitan. Gsp.ro. Romanian . Cătălin Hîldan, the only captain. 7 July 2008 . 19 November 2021.
  14. Web site: Locul lui Cătălin Hîldan, neatins de 21 de ani. Imagine emoționantă din vestiarul lui Dinamo. Gsp.ro. Romanian . Cătălin Hîldan's place, untouched for 21 years. Emotional image from Dinamo's locker room. 5 October 2021 . 19 November 2021.
  15. Web site: Povestea mai puțin știută a scandării "Unicul Căpitan este Cătălin Hîldan": a apărut cu 4 zile înainte de tragedie, într-un context zbuciumat. Gsp.ro. Romanian . The lesser-known story of the chant "The only Captain is Cătălin Hîldan": it appeared 4 days before the tragedy, in a turbulent context. 21 March 2023 . 31 March 2023.
  16. Web site: Domnitorii domina topul celor mai mari 10 romani. Hotnews.ro. Romanian . The rulers dominate the top 10 Romanians. 8 July 2006 . 19 November 2021.