tried hard as a child and saved by his wife

He was close to being fired by Gigi Becali repeatedly, but he resisted under pressure, in the “storm” of declarations, and regained his place as the holder.

Now, Valentin Crețu has just received the sweetest reward possible, a champion medal at the end of his career, 20 years after he took life in his chest and he was leaving his native Buzău alone, on a journey with a one-way ticket.

On Saturday evening, the “salary” from the right flank from FCSB experienced his professional peak moment: he mathematically became the champion of Romania, celebrating the unique moment on the field of the National Arena, surrounded by his family, his wife Mădălina and their two little girls.

Moreover, on his social media accounts, Crețu only has photos with his family, from the first day of school or kindergarten of the two little girls or from the trips they take in their free time. Pictures from nightclubs or luxury cars are missing.

Neighbors spotted him

And the fact that he lives in a neighborhood not very well seen by the people of Bucharest, not nearly one of the faces, but one that ended up opening the bulletins of the news stations for the general debauchery found thereimpressed those close to the footballer:

“He could always move to a more modern area of ​​Bucharest, no one prevents him from doing so, but it does not bother him in any way that he does not live somewhere in the heart of the market. He’s not the type to stand out, and he never will. From this point of view, many players should follow his example”.

Eyewitnesses, who saw Crețu many times walking through the complex that belongs to Ilfov county, also noted that they are neighbors with the footballer from FCSB

“We always see him with his wife and children walking or alone shopping. He stood in front of me at the supermarket, he had bought a box of water, lettuce and a carton of milk. Then he left with them in his arms, on foot, just like a normal person”.

A huge residential complex, but choked with problems

The residential complex Militari Residence, the one where Crețu lives, is increasingly avoided by those who want to buy a house.

The neighborhood, called by the developers “the main bedroom of Bucharest”, is “suffocated”, has few entrances, and the infrastructure leaves much to be desired.

As a rule, the streets flood when it rains more heavily, and in recent months the traffic has become hellish due to the works started on the main road arteries. As if that were not enough, thousands of new blocks of flats are not connected to sewers, they use septic tanks and well water.

Image from 2021, when a street in Militari Residence literally collapsed and then “swallowed” a car / Photo source: Facebook

Valentin Crețu took the title, then sent a clear message: “I want with all my heart to stay here”

After FCSB mathematically secured the title of champion, Valentin Crețu announced his intention to continue with the red-blues from next season as well.

“Since I started playing football, this has been my dream. We made these fans happy, that’s our happiness. It’s the most beautiful moment of my life. It is the most important evening for me. It’s my first championship and I’m proud to play for the most important team. I really want to stay here“, said the “veteran” on the Prima Sport microphone, immediately after the match with Farul Constanța.

Recently, Mihai Stoica, the president of the FCSB Administrative Council, announced that Valentin Crețu will continue in the champion’s camp from the summer as well. The right-back is in the final months of his contract:

“Cretu will sign the extension for sure. It remains, yes. It’s news. He turned 35, but he will do things even at 45, what life he has in him. There is no problem at all. But we need a double in Creţu, yes”, said Mihai Stoica on April 16, at Orange Sport.

The right-back was on the sidelines several times, after getting into Becali’s disgrace. But he was always saved on the last hundred meters, which is why his colleagues made many jokes about him. “He has 9 lives, like a cat”, was the conclusion in the FCSB locker room.

“My colleagues joke that I also beat the cat, which has 9 lives, that I beat anything… I beat any movie, life beats the movie sometimes!”, Creţu declared for Orange Sport.

In almost 5 years at FCSB, the defender brought by the Bucharesters from Gaz Metan Mediaș had an oscillating career. But in the end, the owner Gigi Becali decided to keep it. “Cretu remains, it’s more about loyalty. We must also be loyal to him, and he was loyal to us. I keep him out of respect, I give him a few tens of thousands”, said Gigi Becali.

Crețu, 35 years old, also thought about what he will do after he hangs up his boots.

“I have a lot of plans after retirement, I just want to keep playing. I sometimes wonder where my body gets so much energy from. After I retire, I don’t plan to continue with football.

I am very passionate about tennis and I want to help my eldest daughter, who practices tennis. I also want to do some courses. I have more in my head though. I also know how to barber, I know how to cut hair very well. I’ve been cutting hair myself for 10 years. And that was a passion, the haircut”, said Valentin Creţu.

Valentin Crețu // photo: GSP

Discreet presence, Valentin Crețu opened up about his childhood in a special interview offered in the summer of 2019, when he had not yet signed with FCSB. The footballer from Buzău was talking about the difficulties he faced until he reached the first league.

“It was very difficult for me. A lot of people don’t know. I left home with a big minus, something I don’t wish on anyone. It was very difficult for me until I integrated. I have led a very hard life. I left home when I was 13-14 years old. To take life on your own at such a young age… I went and worked to get boots and everything else I needed.

That made me stronger. Many people talk badly about me, but leaving home without education, without discipline, is very difficult. If you don’t have these things, wherever you go in society you are looked at differently. It’s hard to educate yourself as a child. That was my fate. I was more tormented. He put my life to the test”, confessed Crețu, in a dialogue with the freelance journalist Ovidiu Ionescu.

Crețu was born in Buzău and had to fight almost by himself to become a footballer in League 1:

“I come from a family with 5 brothers. My mother got sick and I stayed with my father. He couldn’t handle it on his own. That’s the reality, I’m not ashamed to say it. I knew how to work, I put my head down and moved on.

I was going, I remember, to some big stores where they needed to unload goods. I’ve been doing this since I was 13. I had no other option. I also played football, and went to school when I could. I didn’t always make it.

I fought and God did not let me! I was very lucky with my wife. I say that thanks to her I am back on the ground“, Valentin Crețu also said, according to the cited source.

We still have young people and maybe they watch and understand something from this interview. They must be serious, modest, build a strong mentality from a young age and success will come.

– Valentin Crețu, in July 2019

Raised by Rm. Sărat and Gloria Buzău, Crețu got to debut in League 1 when Gloria was still in League 1, in the 2008/2009 season. He played only 3 matches, after which he arrived at Chiajna. Since then, he has visited Rapid, Cottbus, ACS Poli Timișoara and Gaz Metan three times, to later take the big step to FCSB.

VIDEO The film of the dream evening of the new champions of Romania » Invasion on the lawn, queues for autographs, running after the coach + Meeting with the gallery at the base in Berceni

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