Marius Niculae

Dinamo

On 22 November 1996, Niculae became one of the youngest-ever players to debut in Divizia A, at 15 years and 190 days, after coming on as a substitute in Dinamo's 5–2 win at home against Farul Constanța. He started the 1997–98 season, playing his first match in a European competition, appearing in a 0–2 historical defeat against Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur on 23 July 1997. On 4 April 1998, he was in the starting line-up in a 0–5 away defeat in the Eternal derby against Steaua. One week later, Niculae managed to score his first league goals, netting a brace in a 7–1 home win against Jiul Petroșani. On 19 April, he scored another brace against FC Național in a 4–2 home win. He scored four goals in 12 appearances, in his second season as a professional. On 13 May, he scored another two goals against FC Național, in a 5–0 League Cup win, in the second round of the South Group.

Following Cornel Dinu's appointment as team manager, the 17-year-old's career began to take off, as he was used more often. He later stated: "The most closest [manager] to me is Cornel Dinu. When he was Dinamo's manager, I made my first-team debut at 15 years and a half and I ended up winning two cups and one championship." He scored his first league goal of the 1998–99 season on 26 September, helping his team to demolish Universitatea Cluj 8–0. He did not find the net again until 21 November when he opened the scoreboard against Petrolul Ploiești in a 3–2 away win. His final goals of 1998…

After representing Romania at the U16 and U18 levels, Niculae was promoted to the U21 level. Niculae's form for Dinamo saw him selected for the Romania U21 team to play Bulgaria U21 on 3 March 1999, and he marked his debut with the second goal as Romania won 3–1. He played his first official match for Romania U21 on 26 March, in a 0–1 defeat against Slovakia U21, coming in as a substitute for Marius Luca in the second half. Despite playing all six remaining qualifiers, Niculae hasn't scored a single goal as Romania failed to qualify to the European Championship. Since he was still eligible to play for Romania U18, Niculae was called up by coach Gheorghe Cristoloveanu for the 2000 European Under-18 Championship qualifiers. He scored a brace in the first match against Bosnia and Herzegovina which ended with a 3–1 win, but he was sent off in the second match against Bulgaria alongside teammates Adrian Olah and Tiberiu Bălan, ending his career for Romania U18. Romania drew in the final match against Ukraine, thus failing to qualify for the play-off. On 21 January 2000, Niculae was called up to Romania's senior team for the first time. On 2 February, he was in the starting line-up against Latvia, making his debut for the national team at only 18 years old. Just as he did while playing for Romania U21, Niculae marked his debut for the senior squad with a goal, netting Romania's second in a 2–0 win. Despite the fact that he scored 20 goals for Dinamo in the 1999–00 season, Niculae…

Niculae's father, Constantin, is a former judoka, who worked for Dinamo București as a fitness coach from 1996 until his departure in 2006. Niculae began judo at the age of five, and had attained a black belt while being trained by his father. He later stated: "The fact that I practiced this sport [judo] in the childhood, helped me to develop both mentally and physically. I think I avoided many injuries due to the fact that I learned how to fall without any danger for my health". Niculae began his football career in 1990, playing for Dinamo under the guidance of Gheorghe Timar. Niculae spent six years at Dinamo's youth academy, before he was promoted by Cornel Dinu at the first team squad. During his first two years as a professional, he activated for both first team as well for the youth squad. During the 1997–98 season, while playing in the youth championship, goalkeeper Cristian Munteanu was sent-off, and since there were no substitutes left, Niculae replaced him without receiving any goal from Petrolul Ploiești.

On 29 June 2008, Niculae married Cristina Vasilescu after eight years of dating. She gave birth to their daughter, Raisa Elena Niculae, on 24 August 2011. Niculae had a conflict with his father for many years due to his relationship with Cristina. They eventually reconciled in late 2007. Niculae was well known for his friendship with former Dinamo captain Cătălin Hîldan, who died on the pitch in a friendly match against Șantierul Naval Oltenița on 5 October 2000. They played together for both junior and senior squad. He dedicated his first league goal against Steaua to Hîldan. After the match, he gave his shirt to Hîldan's nephew, Cătălin who was named after him. Despite sharing a birthplace, he has no connection with his namesake and fellow international, Daniel Niculae. Niculae was nicknamed Săgeată (Arrow in Romanian).