New coach at Constanţa

Romanian champions, HCM Constanţa, have changed their coach for the second time this season, with Ion Crăciun replacing Eden Hairi in Constanţa’s hot seat.



After Zoran Kurtes’ tragic death, HCM Constanţa found themelf in turmoil and appointed Serbian Jovica Cvetković as head coach. Unfortunately, the Romanian champions played worse with Cvetković in charge, and after several defeats in the VELUX EHF Champions League and the Romanian Championship, he resigned.



His place was taken by assistant manager Eden Hairi, who had previously coached Constanţa. Hairi managed to help Constanţa to struggle past Bosna Sarajevo (26:25) and St. Petersburg HC (29:28), but the defeat during the return match with the Russian side (26:29) proved to be the last match for Hairi, who was sacked following a subsequent board meeting.



Hairi’s place will be taken by Ion Crăciun, the ex-Tomis Constanţa coach. Crăciun also coached HCM Constanţa 13 years ago, when he managed to promote the Romanian powerhouse.

"Managing HCM Constanţa is a challenge for me. Unfortunately, the timing isn’t good, but I really hope to help the team achieve its objectives," said Crăciun.

"I do believe that my team can reach the next phase in the VELUX EHF Champions League. If you achieve a difficult task, the reward is bigger. HCM Constanţa are a very important club, and so, their objectives are challenging. Our players need to play well and give 100% in order to qualify for the next phase. They need to give all they’ve got both in training sessions and in official matches," continued the newly-appointed coach.

"We also need to maintain a good relationship with our fans and this can only be done by playing well", added Crăciun.



After six matches, HCM Constanţa is currently in fifth place in VELUX EHF Champions League’s Group D, with only 4 points.