Adrian Ilie
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Adrian Bucurel Ilie | ||
| Date of birth | 20 April 1974 | ||
| Place of birth | Craiova, Romania | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Playing position |
Left winger Striker |
||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1991–1993 | Electroputere Craiova | 31 | (12) |
| 1993–1996 | Steaua Bucureşti | 85 | (28) |
| 1996–1998 | Galatasaray | 30 | (12) |
| 1998–2002 | Valencia | 84 | (29) |
| 2002–2003 | Deportivo Alavés | 22 | (6) |
| 2003–2004 | Beşiktaş | 13 | (6) |
| 2004–2005 | Zürich | 23 | (7) |
| Total | 287 | (100) | |
| National team | |||
| 1993–2005 | Romania | 55 | (13) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. |
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Adrian Bucurel Ilie (Romanian pronunciation: [adriˈan bukuˈrel iˈli.e]; born 20 April 1974) is a Romanian former international footballer. He was nicknamed "Cobra" by his former coach at Valencia, Claudio Ranieri, because of his spectacular skills and goalscoring prowess.
Ilie began his career with his local club FC Electroputere Craiova before transferring to Romania's biggest club FC Steaua București in 1993. During his three years with Steaua, Ilie helped the club to three consecutive Romanian league titles and the 1995–96 Cupa României.
In 1996, Ilie was purchased by Turkish side Galatasaray for an amount of €2.35 million, where he won the Turkish championship in 1996–97. After an impressive season, he moved from Galatasaray to Valencia CF for a reported US$ 7 million, where he replaced in the squad the Brazilian star Romário and took over his no. 11 jersey. At Valencia he impressed from his debut, scoring twelve goals in 17 matches, and thus getting the nickname of "Cobra" from coach Claudio Ranieri, because he was as "lethal as a cobra". At the Mestalla, Ilie made a remarkable attacking duo together with team mate Claudio López, helping Los Che to win the 1998–99 Copa del Rey. In 2000, under Héctor Cúper's command, Valencia reached the final of the UEFA Champions League, where Ilie appeared as a substitute for Gerardo in a 3–0 loss to Real Madrid CF. Two years later, Ilie was a member of Rafael Benítez's 2001–02 La Liga winning squad, scoring only two goals in 10 matches because of injuries.
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