COACH IN FOCUS: Dragos Militaru

Dragoș Militaru took over as head coach of FC Unirea Dej in January 2020, earned promotion and then steered the team to 9th and 4th-place finishes in Romania’s second division. From September 2024 to February 2025 he served as assistant coach at Vejle Boldklub in Denmark. In our interview, Dragoș discusses how he built a competitive team with limited resources, the cultural and tactical lessons he learned in Danish football, and where he sees his coaching career heading next.

In the 2020/21 season, you were promoted to Romania’s second division with FC Unirea Dej. In the following two years, you finished the regular season in 9th and 4th place – an impressive achievement for a newly promoted team. How did you manage to turn a promoted side into such a stable and competitive team? What were the main challenges you had to overcome, and what did you focus on most in your daily work?

Dragos Militaru: First of all, the club was one with limited financial resources and for this reason we focused on young players or those who for various reasons had not played in the recent period. Our focus in the training process was on creating an environment in which the boys would come to training with pleasure and feel that they could develop. Individual development also played a very important role because it also attracted the development of the team. We promoted with an average age of 19 years and in the 2 seasons of L2 we had an average of 21 -22 years. Even from the perspective of the average age we had some obstacles to overcome because first of all the vast majority of the players had never played at a higher level but were also prone to inconstancy in their evolutions. That is why the individual discussion sessions on both the sporting and human side played a very important role. Also in the 2nd season of L2 we were very close to a promotion play-off in the Super League which meant the best ranking in the 100-year history of the club. Due to this fact the club managed to sell some players, to have players constantly selected for the national teams U 19, U 20, U21 and the senior national team of the Republic of Moldova, to play with a full stadium in the play-off matches for promotion.

You have worked as a head coach in Romania’s second division and as an assistant coach in Denmark’s top league – two very different roles in two distinct football cultures. What differences do you notice between Romanian and Danish football, both on and off the pitch? Are there elements of Scandinavian football that you’d like to integrate more into your own coaching philosophy? And how differently did you perceive your role in those two environments?

Dragos Militaru: There are quite big differences between danish and romanian football but the most important thing is that these differences lead to my development as a coach being the thing that i really wanted. I think that the level of planning, organization and seriousness in denmark is one of the highest level, which helped me a lot. Another positive thing was the infrastructure and facilities that are constantly improving in danish football. If I had to take something with me it would be organization, planning and respect for the players. Also attention to detail and clarity of simple things I consider 2 very important things within a team. Yes, my role in Denmark was as an assistant coach, but taking into account that the way of working is different in Denmark, being quite a lot of people on the staff and each with their own role I felt very responsible. Also because I had worked before for 5 years as a head coach it was an advantage because I knew what the head coach feels, how he feels and what he wants. And last but not least, I accepted this position as assistant coach because I was in the last 8 months of my Pro license and I thought it was the best way to be prepared for the next level of my career.

Despite your young age, you’ve already gained significant experience – as a head coach, as an assistant coach, and both at home and abroad. Where do you see your path leading in the next few years? In which role do you want to continue developing, and which countries or leagues appeal to you the most – or do you see yourself returning to Romania in the long run?

Dragos Militaru: Of course, in the next period I see myself working as a head coach because I consider that I have gone through all the stages in the last 9-10 years. The experience gained will help me adapt to any environment so that I can bring added value to the place where I will go. I would like to continue in a championship where on the one hand I can bring value and on the other hand I would continue to develop as a person and as a coach. Being the owner of the Pro license after 10 years of work, I believe that the objective now is to demonstrate in L1 as a head coach that I can, together with the team, be the best through my way of seeing things. I have always liked to be authentic and different.

Thank you very much, Dragos, for your time!