| Valentin Țicu | |
| Upright: | 0.7 |
| Fullname: | Valentin Constantin Țicu |
| Birth Date: | 19 September 2000 |
| Birth Place: | Ploiești, Romania |
| Height: | 1.81 m |
| Position: | Left-back |
| Currentclub: | Petrolul Ploiești |
| Clubnumber: | 5 |
| Youthyears1: | –2018 |
| Youthclubs1: | Petrolul Ploiești |
| Years1: | 2018– |
| Caps1: | 162 |
| Goals1: | 8 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2018 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 2 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2021–2023 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 11 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Pcupdate: | 29 July 2024 |
Valentin Constantin Țicu (in Romanian; Moldavian; Moldovan pronounced as /valenˈtin konstanˈtin ˈt͡siku/; born 19 September 2000) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Liga I club Petrolul Ploiești.
Țicu is a youth product of Petrolul Ploiești, and made his senior debut for the club in a Liga III game against Flacăra Moreni on 30 March 2018. On 28 September that year, he registered his first Liga II appearance by playing the full 90 minutes in a 5–0 thrashing of Aerostar Bacău.
Țicu scored his first goal on 13 October 2019, in a 3–0 league win over Daco-Getica București. In the 2021–22 campaign, he gained team captaincy and aided with 26 appearances and three goals as "the Yellow-Blues" won the Liga II championship.
Țicu made his debut in the top tier by starting in a 0–1 home loss to Voluntari, on 18 July 2022.[1] On 31 March 2023, he scored his first Liga I goal—and the only of the match—in an away victory over FC U Craiova.[2] He was an undisputed starter during the 2022–23 season, totalling 38 league matches.
On 13 September 2023, Petrolul Ploiești announced that Țicu signed a contract extension lasting until 2026.[3] Eleven days later, he committed a foul which left Hermannstadt player Dragoș Iancu with an ankle fracture and was handed a 16-match suspension,[4] later reduced in half.
On 15 June 2023, Țicu was selected by manager Emil Săndoi in the Romania under-21 squad for the 2023 UEFA European Championship.[5] Two days later, as a result of several injuries within the senior team squad, he was called up for a UEFA Euro 2024 qualifier against Switzerland,[6] but did not make his debut.
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Petrolul Ploiești | 2018–19 | Liga II | 15 | 0 | — | — | — | 15 | 0 | ||||
| 2019–20 | Liga II | 25 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 28 | 1 | ||||
| 2020–21 | Liga II | 23 | 1 | 2 | 1 | — | — | 25 | 2 | ||||
| 2021–22 | Liga II | 26 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 3 | ||||
| 2022–23 | Liga I | 38 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 40 | 1 | ||||
| 2023–24 | Liga I | 32 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 33 | 1 | ||||
| 2024–25 | Liga I | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 1 | ||||
| Career total | 162 | 8 | 8 | 1 | — | — | 170! | 9 | |||||
Petrolul Ploiești