| Ionuț Nedelcearu | |
| Upright: | 0.8 |
| Birth Date: | 1996 4, df=yes |
| Birth Place: | Bucharest, Romania |
| Height: | 1.90 m |
| Position: | Centre-back |
| Currentclub: | Palermo |
| Clubnumber: | 18 |
| Youthyears1: | 2003–2013 |
| Youthclubs1: | Dinamo București |
| Years1: | 2013–2014 |
| Clubs1: | Dinamo II București |
| Caps1: | 24 |
| Goals1: | 0 |
| Years2: | 2013–2018 |
| Clubs2: | Dinamo București |
| Caps2: | 89 |
| Goals2: | 5 |
| Years3: | 2018–2020 |
| Clubs3: | Ufa |
| Caps3: | 65 |
| Goals3: | 1 |
| Years4: | 2020–2021 |
| Clubs4: | AEK Athens |
| Caps4: | 25 |
| Goals4: | 1 |
| Years5: | 2021–2022 |
| Clubs5: | Crotone |
| Caps5: | 34 |
| Goals5: | 2 |
| Years6: | 2022– |
| Clubs6: | Palermo |
| Caps6: | 63 |
| Goals6: | 2 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2013 |
| Nationalteam1: | Romania U17 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 2 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2013 |
| Nationalteam2: | Romania U18 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 4 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2014–2019 |
| Nationalteam3: | Romania U21 |
| Nationalcaps3: | 18 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 1 |
| Nationalyears4: | 2018– |
| Nationalteam4: | Romania |
| Nationalcaps4: | 27 |
| Nationalgoals4: | 2 |
| Club-Update: | 8 November 2024 |
| Nationalteam-Update: | 4 June 2024 |
Ionuț Nedelcearu (pronounced as /ro/; born 25 April 1996) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Serie B club Palermo and the Romania national team.
Nedelcearu joined the youth system of Dinamo București at the age of seven.[1] After playing for the reserves, he made his first-team debut on 31 October 2013 in a Cupa României match against Chindia Târgoviște, aged 17.[2] On 13 December that year, he recorded his first Liga I appearance in a 4–0 home victory over ACS Poli Timișoara.[3]
Nedelcearu netted his first goal for the Alb-roșii in a 3–2 away win against Pandurii Târgu Jiu on 28 October 2015, a game where he also scored in his own net.[4] [5]
On 15 February 2018, Nedelcearu signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Russian Premier League side FC Ufa.[6] In the summer of 2019, press reported that several teams showed interest in signing him, including Roma and Zenit Saint Petersburg.[7]
On 5 October 2020, Nedelcearu signed a four-year contract with Super League Greece club AEK Athens.[8] On 1 November 2020, he scored his first goal, the equalizer of an eventual 2–1 home win against OFI.[9]
On 16 July 2021, he moved to Italian club Crotone on a three-year contract, for a fee of €1.2 million.[10]
On 27 July 2022, following Crotone's relegation to Serie C, Nedelcearu signed for Serie B club Palermo on a three-year deal.[11] He made his debut with the rosanero in the 32nd finals of Coppa Italia against Torino.
On 27 March 2018, Nedelcearu made his full debut for Romania after being brought on as an 83rd-minute substitute in a 1–0 win over Sweden.[12]
On 7 June 2024, he was selected in Romania's squad for the UEFA Euro 2024,[13] but did not feature in any match.
Born in Bucharest, Nedelcearu attended the National University of Physical Education and Sport before moving abroad for the first time.[14] His father, Marin, was also a professional footballer,[15] while his mother, Geta, was a sprinter in her youth.[14]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Dinamo București | 2013–14 | Liga I | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| 2014–15 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 0 | ||||
| 2015–16 | 21 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 1 | ||||
| 2016–17 | 33 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | — | — | 39 | 3 | ||||
| 2017–18 | 21 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 25 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 89 | 5 | 11 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 111 | 6 | |||
| Ufa | 2017–18 | Russian Premier League | 10 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 10 | 0 | ||||
| 2018–19 | 26 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 34 | 1 | |||
| 2019–20 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 21 | 0 | |||||
| 2020–21 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 10 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 65 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 75 | 1 | |||
| AEK Athens | 2020–21 | Superleague Greece | 25 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | — | 35 | 1 | ||
| Crotone | 2021–22 | Serie B | 34 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 36 | 2 | |||
| Palermo | 2022–23 | Serie B | 36 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 37 | 0 | |||
| 2023–24 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 21 | 2 | ||||
| 2024–25 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 8 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 63 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 66 | 2 | ||||
| Career total | 276 | 11 | 21 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 323 | 12 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romania | 2018 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 6 | 0 | ||
| 2020 | 4 | 2 | ||
| 2021 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 2022 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2024 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 27 | 2 | ||
Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Nedelcearu goal.[16]
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 November 2020 | Stadionul Ilie Oană, Ploiești, Romania | 12 | 3–0 | 5–3 | Friendly | |
| 2 | 5–0 |
Dinamo București