Cornel Drăgușin

Drăgușin was born on 26 March 1926 in Bucharest, Romania and began playing football in 1936 at local club Industria Iutei. Afterwards he went to Sindicatul Textil București where he stayed until 1948. In 1949 he arrived at Steaua București where he met coach Ferenc Rónay who encouraged him to start coaching at age 25.

Drăgușin's first coaching spell was at the youth of Steaua București from 1950 until 1953. He then managed the youth team of Progresul București, where he won the national youth championship in 1954. Afterwards he moved up to the reserves and finally the A team, alongside Ioan Lupaș, managing to reach the 1958 Cupa României final which was lost with 1–0 to Știința Timișoara. In the following two years he continued to work at Progresul, being an assistant, as the team won the 1959–60 Cupa României, also having a short spell as head coach. In 1962, the Iraq Football Association opted for a foreign coach from the Eastern Bloc, and appointed the Romanian manager as head coach of the Iraq national team. Drăgușin was the first foreign coach of Iraq and at the beginning of his tenure, he was supervised by colonel Abdul Salam Arif who later became the country's president. After his return from Iraq in 1963, Drăgușin joined Progresul again with coach Dincă Schileru for the 1963–64 season, before taking charge of the Syrian national team in 1965. He led Syria at the 1965 Arab Games, earning a 13–0 win against Muscat and Oman and a 4–0 victory over Lahej but lost to Libya and Sudan, failing to progress from the group stage. Afterwards he reached the 1966 Arab Cup final, losing it with 2–1 to Iraq. Upon his return, the Romanian FA appointed Drăgușin as manager of the Romania under–23 side for a tournament in Central Africa. In 1968, he returned to Progresul, before moving to Steaua…

Manager

Progresul București

Cupa României runner-up: 1957–58 Syria

Arab Cup runner-up: 1966