{{Short description|Romanian footballer and manager}} {{Use dmy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Dan Alexa | image = Alexa cerf 2004.JPG | caption = Alexa in 2004 | full_name = | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1979|10|28|df=yes}} | birth_place = Caransebeș, Romania | height = 1.86 m | position = Midfielder | currentclub = ASU Politehnica Timișoara<br>(head coach) | youthyears1 = | youthclubs1 = CSȘ Caransebeș | youthyears2 = | youthclubs2 = LPS Banatul Timișoara | years1 = 1998 |clubs1 = UM Timișoara|caps1 =10|goals1 =2 | years2 = 1999–2001 |clubs2 = Rocar București|caps2 =45|goals2 =2 | years3 = 2001 |clubs3 = Fulgerul Bragadiru|caps3 =4|goals3 =0 | years4 = 2002 |clubs4 = Universitatea Craiova|caps4 =15|goals4 =0 | years5 = 2002–2004 |clubs5 = Dinamo București|caps5 =47|goals5 =1 | years6 = 2004–2005 |clubs6 = Beijing Hyundai|caps6 =40|goals6 =0 | years7 = 2006 |clubs7 = Dinamo București|caps7 =13|goals7 =1 | years8 = 2006–2011 |clubs8 = Politehnica Timișoara|caps8 =126|goals8 =5 | years9 = 2011–2012 |clubs9 = Rapid București|caps9 =25|goals9 =3 | years10= 2012–2014 |clubs10 = Anorthosis Famagusta|caps10 = 40|goals10 =4 | years11= 2017 |clubs11 = Viitorul Caransebeș|caps11 = 1|goals11 =0 | totalcaps = 366 | totalgoals = 18 | nationalyears1 = 2000 |nationalteam1 = Romania U21 |nationalcaps1 = 1 |nationalgoals1 = 0 | nationalyears2 = 2004–2011 |nationalteam2 = Romania |nationalcaps2 = 6 |nationalgoals2 = 2 | manageryears1 = 2014–2015 | managerclubs1 = ACS Poli Timișoara | manageryears2 = 2015–2016 | managerclubs2 = Rapid București | manageryears3 = 2016 | managerclubs3 = ASA Târgu Mureș | manageryears4 = 2016–2017 | managerclubs4 = Concordia Chiajna | manageryears5 = 2017–2019 | managerclubs5 = Dunărea Călărași | manageryears6 = 2019 | managerclubs6 = Astra Giurgiu | manageryears7 = 2020 | managerclubs7 = Rapid București | manageryears8 = 2020–2021 | managerclubs8 = ASU Politehnica Timișoara | manageryears9 = 2021–2022 | managerclubs9 = CSM Reșița | manageryears10= 2022–2023 | managerclubs10= FC Brașov | manageryears11= 2023 | managerclubs11= Botoșani | manageryears12= 2024–2025 | managerclubs12= Tunari | manageryears13= 2025– | managerclubs13= ASU Politehnica Timișoara }}
'''Dan Alexa''' (born 28 October 1979) is a Romanian professional football manager and former footballer who played as a midfielder, currently in charge of Liga III club ASU Politehnica Timișoara.
==Club career==
===Early career=== Although born in Banat, Alexa was considered disposable while at UM Timișoara in 1998, and he moved to Rocar București where he helped his side reach the 2000–01 Romanian Cup final.
===Dinamo București=== After several years with short spells at Fulgeru Bragadiru and Universitatea Craiova, Alexa got his big chance as Dinamo București decided to transfer him. His performances were of a high caliber throughout the two seasons he spent there, but he also got a reputation for being an extremely aggressive player. In two years, he scored 1 goal in 47 appearances.
===Beijing Hyundai=== His consequent move to Beijing Hyundai saw him leave Romania for two years. In a friendly match against Real Madrid he was selected man of the match.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=Cronica Română|title=Comentand la rece etapa a 27-a: Cine sunt premiantii, cine sunt perdantii|url=http://www.cronicaromana.ro/index.php?editie=1046&art=51843|date=17 May 2006|access-date=30 April 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719131753/http://www.cronicaromana.ro/index.php?editie=1046&art=51843|archive-date=19 July 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>
===Dinamo București=== He returned to Dinamo in 2006 just for a few months playing 13 matches, scoring one goal.
===Politehnica Timișoara=== In the summer of the same year, Politehnica boss Marian Iancu decided to bring Alexa – by then, a real "persona non-grata" in Timișoara, due to his pledge of loyalty to Dinamo – back to the city where he started his career, together with teammate Ştefan Grigorie.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.gsp.ro/fotbal/liga-1/pe-minus-7021.html | title=Pe minus| publisher=Gsp.ro| language=Romanian |trans-title=On minus| date=22 August 2007 | access-date=27 October 2020}}</ref> The fans protested at Alexa's arrival in Timișoara through several banners and chants, but the club's management remained unimpressed. Alexa himself stated that he had made those statements out of necessity and that he will do all he can to prove to the fans that he is a real professional. A few months after his arrival, Alexa became the captain of Poli. He is nicknamed "the surgeon" because he inflicted many injuries requiring surgery to opposing players. On 19 April 2010, he scored the equaliser goal in the 98th minute against CFR Cluj and kept Poli in the battle for the title, however Poli finished 5th, losing their last three matches.
===Rapid București=== On 4 June 2011, the former captain of Politehnica Timișoara signed a two-year contract with Rapid București following the relegation of Poli.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gsp.ro/fotbal/liga-1/gazeta-a-avut-dreptate-alexa-si-surdu-au-semnat-cu-rapid-242877.html |title=Alexa and Surdu signed with Rapid |date=4 June 2011 |publisher= Gazeta Sporturilor }}</ref>
===Anorthosis Famagusta=== On 24 June 2012, Dan Alexa signed with the Cyprus First Division football club, Anorthosis Famagusta, on a free transfer. He signed a reported €250,000/yr contract with the club.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sport.ro/liga-1/rapid-a-pierdut-un-super-jucator-sabau-s-a-trezit-fara-el-in-cantonamentul-din-austria-ce-jucator-le-a.html |title=Rapid a pierdut un super jucator |date=24 June 2012 |publisher= Sport.ro }}</ref>
==International career== Alexa was first called up by the national team in 2004. Later in 2010, he was called up for a friendly match against Italy after a six-year absence.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.analogtv.ro/2009/06/04/alexa-s-a-intors-de-la-nationala-si-vrea-sa-joace-in-finala-cupei/ | work=Analog TV | title=Alexa returns to national team | date=18 November 2010}}</ref> Alexa scored his first goals for Romania in a 2–2 draw against Ukraine at Cyprus International Cup 2011.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.gsp.ro/fotbal/nationala/livetext-romania-ucraina-2-2-cistigatoarea-se-decide-la-penalty-uri-227849.html | work= Gazeta Sporturilor | title=Romania – Ukraine 2–2 | date= 8 February 2011}}</ref> However, Romania were eliminated from the tournament, after losing on penalty kicks 4–2.
==Managerial career== After he ended his playing career, Alexa became a manager. His first job was at ACS Poli Timișoara, in March 2014. Since 23 August 2017 he was manager of Dunărea Călărași until summer of 2019. Then he was named manager of Astra Giurgiu.
==Career statistics== ===International===
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Appearances and goals by national team and year<ref name="EU">{{cite web|url=https://eu-football.info/_player.php?id=275|title=Dan Alexa|publisher=European Football|access-date=23 January 2025}}</ref> |- !National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan="3"|Romania |2004||1||0 |- |2010||1||0 |- |2011||4||2 |- !colspan="2"|Total!!6!!2 |}
:''Scores and results list Romania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Alexa goal''.<ref name=EU/> {| class="wikitable sortable" |+ List of international goals scored by Ionuț Nedelcearu |- !scope="col"|No. !scope="col" data-sort-type="date"|Date !scope="col"|Venue !scope="col"|Cap !scope="col"|Opponent !scope="col"|Score !scope="col"|Result !scope="col"|Competition |- !align="center"| 1 | rowspan=2| 8 February 2011 || rowspan=2| Paralimni Stadium, Paralimni, Cyprus || align="center" rowspan=2|3 || rowspan=2| {{fb|Ukraine}} || align="center"| 1–2 || rowspan=2 align="center"| 2–2 || rowspan=2| Friendly |- !align="center"| 2 |align="center"| 2–2 |}
==Managerial statistics== {{Updated|23 May 2026}}<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sspolitehnica.ro/dan-alexa-politehnica/|title=Nou antrenor la Dunărea. Dan Alexa a semnat contract pe un an cu gruparea de pe malul Borcei|date=12 November 2020 |publisher=adevarul.ro|language=Romanian|access-date=13 November 2020}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" style="text-align: center" |- !rowspan=2|Team !rowspan=2|From !rowspan=2|To !colspan=8|Record |- !G !! W !! D !! L !! GF !! GA !! GD !! Win % |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} ACS Poli Timișoara |align=left|17 March 2014 |align=left|22 August 2015 {{WDL|48|21|14|13|for=57|against=41|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} Rapid București |align=left|27 August 2015 |align=left|20 July 2016 {{WDL|34|22|7|5|for=55|against=21|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} ASA Târgu Mureș |align=left|7 August 2016 |align=left|22 December 2016 {{WDL|23|8|3|12|for=32|against=38|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} Concordia Chiajna |align=left|23 December 2016 |align=left|18 July 2017 {{WDL|20|6|6|8|for=20|against=25|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} Dunărea Călărași |align=left|22 August 2017 |align=left|12 June 2019 {{WDL|76|36|21|19|for=95|against=63|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} Astra Giurgiu |align=left|13 June 2019 |align=left|10 October 2019 {{WDL|13|5|4|4|for=16|against=14|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} Rapid București |align=left|11 March 2020 |align=left|6 August 2020 {{WDL|5|1|3|1|for=4|against=4|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} ASU Politehnica Timișoara |align=left|11 November 2020 |align=left|17 June 2021 {{WDL|19|6|6|7|for=20|against=24|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} CSM Reșița |align=left|30 June 2021 |align=left|10 June 2022 {{WDL|32|25|6|1|for=91|against=16|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} FC Brașov |align=left|23 June 2022 |align=left|8 August 2023 {{WDL|27|13|7|7|for=58|against=31|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} Botoșani |align=left|1 September 2023 |align=left|2 November 2023 {{WDL|9|0|3|6|for=10|against=24|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} Tunari |align=left|18 March 2024 |align=left|23 July 2025 {{WDL|37|26|4|7|for=91|against=30|diff=yes}} |- |align=left|{{flagicon|Romania}} ASU Politehnica Timișoara |align=left|24 July 2025 |align=left|present {{WDL|33|24|5|4|for=69|against=18|diff=yes}} |- !colspan="3"|Total {{WDLtot|376|193|89|94|for=618|against=349|diff=yes}} |}
==Honours== ===Player=== '''UM Timișoara''' *Divizia C: 1998–99 '''Rocar București''' *Cupa României runner-up: 2000–01 '''Dinamo București''' *Divizia A: 2003–04 *Cupa României: 2002–03, 2003–04 '''Politehnica Timișoara''' *Cupa României runner-up: 2006–07, 2008–09
===Coach=== '''ACS Poli Timișoara''' *Liga II: 2014–15 '''Rapid București''' *Liga II: 2015–16 '''Dunărea Călărași''' *Liga II: 2017–18 '''CSM Reșița''' *Liga III: 2021–22 '''Tunari''' *Liga III: 2024–25 '''ASU Politehnica Timișoara''' *Liga III: 2025–26
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== *{{RomanianSoccer|20/dan-alexa}} *{{NFT player|7514}}
{{SSU Politehnica Timișoara squad}} {{Navboxes |title= Dan Alexa managerial positions |list1= {{ACS Poli Timișoara managers}} {{ASA Târgu Mureș managers}} {{ASU Politehnica Timișoara managers}} {{CS Concordia Chiajna managers}} {{CSM Reșița managers}} {{FC Astra Giurgiu managers}} {{FC Dunărea Călărași managers}} {{FC Rapid București managers}} {{FC Botoșani managers}} }}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexa, Dan}} Category:1979 births Category:People from Caransebeș Category:Living people Category:Romanian men's footballers Category:Romania men's international footballers Category:Romania men's under-21 international footballers Category:Men's association football midfielders Category:CSP UM Timișoara players Category:AFC Rocar București players Category:FC Politehnica Timișoara players Category:FC U Craiova 1948 players Category:FC Dinamo București players Category:Beijing Guoan F.C. players Category:FC Rapid București players Category:Anorthosis Famagusta FC players Category:Liga I players Category:Liga I managers Category:Liga II players Category:Liga II managers Category:Liga III players Category:Cypriot First Division players Category:Chinese Super League players Category:Romanian expatriate men's footballers Category:Expatriate men's footballers in China Category:Expatriate men's footballers in Cyprus Category:Romanian expatriate sportspeople in China Category:Romanian expatriate sportspeople in Cyprus Category:Romanian football managers Category:ACS Poli Timișoara managers Category:ASA 2013 Târgu Mureș managers Category:CS Concordia Chiajna managers Category:FC Dunărea Călărași managers Category:FC Astra Giurgiu managers Category:FC Rapid București managers Category:SSU Politehnica Timișoara managers Category:CSM Reșița managers Category:FC Brașov (2021) managers Category:FC Botoșani managers Category:CS Tunari managers Category:Footballers from Caraș-Severin County