In Memory of Mircea Lucescu: Igor Tsyganyk's Remembrances

Igor Tsyganyk, a well-known Ukrainian journalist and commentator, recounted his memories associated with the remarkable Romanian coach Mircea Lucescu, whose death has been a great loss for Ukrainian football. Tsyganyk shared how in 2019, he had a chance encounter with Lucescu in Kyiv, which led to an agreement for an interview the following day.

“In August 2019, Mircea Lucescu came to Kyiv for a few days. We happened to meet in a restaurant at one of the hotels in the city center. He was with his wife, who left an incredible impression on me with her charm and warmth towards her husband. I dared to ask Mircea Lucescu for a personal meeting the next day — he agreed,” recalled Tsyganyk.

Tsyganyk noted that prior to this meeting, they had crossed paths several times in various locations, but had never spoken one-on-one. “We had spoken on the phone a dozen times. From those episodes, it was hard to form a complete opinion about his personality,” the journalist added.

The following day, according to Tsyganyk, their meeting took place in the lobby of the Hyatt hotel. “I will remember this conversation for the rest of my life. We talked for about three hours — about everything under the sun, but mostly about football. I have probably never met anyone in my life who loved this game as much as he did. He was simply obsessed with it,” he emphasized.

Tsyganyk also revealed that Lucescu dreamed of returning to Ukrainian football. “At that time, he sincerely hoped that Shakhtar would offer him a return after Fonseca's departure. But then Castro came in. Just a year later, Mircea Mihailovich took over Dynamo and won everything that could be won on the domestic stage in his first season,” the journalist noted.

Moreover, Tsyganyk highlighted that Lucescu had deep feelings for Ukraine and planned to return to Kyiv. “In recent years, we communicated a lot. When the war began, Lucescu received an offer to head Fenerbahce, but he refused, explaining that he could not leave Ukraine during such a difficult time. The last time we spoke was six days before he left this world. He said that he definitely wanted to come to Kyiv. He didn't make it,” Tsyganyk shared.

“One day, a great story could be written about Lucescu, but it needs to be rethought. For now, we all must express our sincere condolences to his family. A person has passed away, who will be remembered for a very long time. And his contribution to Ukrainian football will only be appreciated many years from now,” Tsyganyk concluded in his Instagram post.

It is worth noting that on March 29, 2026, Mircea Lucescu was hospitalized after feeling unwell during the Romanian national team's training camp following a defeat to Turkey (0:1) in the 2026 World Cup qualifying playoff. On April 2, he left his position as the coach of the Romanian team.

On April 3, Lucescu suffered an acute myocardial infarction right in the hospital. He was later placed in a medically induced coma after severe cardiac arrhythmias that did not respond to treatment. During a computed tomography scan, Lucescu was found to have multiple signs of ischemic cerebral strokes and pulmonary thromboembolism, with his condition assessed as critical. Cardiologist Stefan Busnatu reported damage to several organs — heart, brain, and lungs.

Earlier, we also reported that Serhiy Rebrov emotionally reacted to Lucescu's death, mentioning the competition in Ukraine, which reflects the tremendous impact this coach had on Ukrainian football.