Gheorghe Hagi is the Romanian midfielder who is regarded as one of the greatest ever during the late 20th century. He is known for his exceptional passing skills, while also scoring plenty of goals in the process. Many also regarded him to be the greatest Romanian footballer ever. He is often called by the nickname Regele, which translates into The King. Many also regard him as the Maradona of Europe. He is best known for his exploits with the Romanian national team. He has represented the national team in six major tournaments, which includes the World Cup and the European championships.

Gheorghe Hagi started his career with Romanian club Farul Constanţa in 1982. However, he spent only one season with the club before moving to Sportul Studenţesc. It was with Sportul Studenţesc that his reputation started to blossom amidst interest from various European clubs. However, in the end, it was Romanian club Steaua Bucureşti who managed to acquire the services of the diminutive midfielder in 1987. Having spent most of his early part of the career in Romania, Gheorghe Hagi found no difficulty in settling into the new setup.

He was soon scoring plenty of goals and interests 97 appearances for Steaua Bucureşti, he had managed a quite impressive 76 goals from midfield. It soon lead to transfer interest from major clubs across Europe like Real Madrid, who in the end, ended up signing the Romanian for $4.3 million. It was one of the largest transfer fees paid during that time. He spent two seasons with Real Madrid before moving to Brescia.

After helping Brescia win the promotion back to the top flight in 1994, Gheorghe Hagi returned to Spain, but this time playing for Real Madrid’s archrivals Barcelona. His stay in Spain did not last long once again after he moved to Galatasaray in 1996. He spent five years with the Turkish club making 132 appearances before retiring in 2001. Gheorghe Hagi managed to retire as one of the greatest players in the world.

It is on the international stage Gheorghe Hagi has had the most success. He has represented the Romanian national team in 125 appearances and scored 35 goals. Even though the national team did not win any major trophies, he won individual accolades like the European Cup top scorer in 1988, and the inclusion into the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team. He was also voted in the FIFA 100 list.

In terms of the success in the club career, Gheorghe Hagi has won the likes of the Romanian League, Turkish Super League, UEFA Cup, European Super Cup, and the Supercopa de España.

Gheorghe Hagi started his management career by managing the Romanian national team in 2001. He, however, failed to qualify for the World Cup. After a two-year break, Gheorghe Hagi returned to management with Bursaspor. Over the years, Gheorghe Hagi has managed the likes of Galatasaray, Politehnica Timişoara, and Steaua Bucureşti. His most successful coaching career has been with Galatasaray, with whom he has won the Turkish Cup in 2005.