Mircea Lucescu, Romanian football legend and coach, dies aged 80

SportFootballMircea Lucescu, Romanian football legend and coach, dies aged 80Lucescu died days after appearing at the 2026 World Cup playoff semifinal soccer match between Turkey and RomaniaAssociated Press Tuesday 07 April 2026 19:41 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b2953264","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/mircea-lucescu-dead-romania-national-football-team-b2953264.html","title":"Mircea Lucescu, Romanian football legend and coach, dies aged 80"}}open image in gallery{"id":"trigger-autogallery-13271","index":0}Mircea Lucescu, Head Coach of Romania, looks on prior to the FIFA World Cup 2026 European Qualifiers KO play-offs match between Türkiye and Romania at Besiktas Park on March 26, 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey (Getty Images)Join the Miguel Delaney: Inside Football newsletter and get behind-the-scenes access and unrivalled insightJoin the Miguel Delaney: Inside Football newsletterJoin the Miguel Delaney: Inside Football newsletterEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_Football_CDP","regTitle":"Miguel Delaney: Inside Football","subscriptionGroup":"readingTheGame","subscriptionGroupId":"d6776bff-0bec-4d53-a0ce-bd38db6811e5","type":"football","pathPrefix":["/sport/football","/topic/fantasy-football"],"associatedAuthors":["Miguel Delaney","Richard Jolly"],"title":"Join the Miguel Delaney: Inside Football newsletter and get behind-the-scenes access and unrivalled insight","mobileTitle":"Join the Miguel Delaney: Inside Football newsletter","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/miguelDelaney1_1.png","newslette...