Narcis Coman

Coman was born on 5 November 1946 in Giurgiu, Romania. He grew up as a fan of CCA București (for whom he would get to play when the team was named Steaua) and of goalkeeping after seeing a game of the team on TV, being impressed by how Ion Voinescu defended the goal post. He began playing football as a goalkeeper around the age of 12 with his cousin. Three years later, he joined local club Olimpia, where he was coached by Marin Anastasovici, afterwards moving to neighboring team, Victoria. Coman started playing senior level football at ȘN Oltenița in the regional championship, helping it gain promotion to Divizia C where after playing only two games he was transferred by UTA Arad. He made his Divizia A debut on 26 September 1965 under coach Nicolae Dumitrescu, managing to keep a clean sheet in UTA's 2–0 victory against Universitatea Craiova. After one season, he was transferred by Dinamo București, who then, two weeks later used him as an exchange player for fellow goalkeeper Spiridon Niculescu from Argeș Pitești. Coman played all six games for Argeș in the 1966–67 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, as the team eliminated Sevilla and Toulouse in the first two rounds, and was defeated in the third round with 1–0 on aggregate by Dinamo Zagreb, who eventually won the competition. Following a notable performance in Argeș's away game in the second leg of the confrontation against Sevilla that ended in a 2–2 draw, the Marca newspaper praised him, stating:"Coman managed some phenomenal saves…

Under the guidance of coaches Nicolae Dumitrescu and Gheorghe Ola, Coman helped Romania's under-18 national team win the 1962 European championship. Subsequently, between 1967 and 1971, he played four matches for Romania's Olympic team. Coman played eight games for Romania, making his debut on 29 October 1967 under coach Constantin Teașcă in a 0–0 friendly draw against Poland in which he managed to keep a clean sheet. He played injured in a 3–0 away loss to Portugal in the 1970 World Cup qualifiers. As he conceded three goals, coach Angelo Niculescu blamed him for the loss, but Coman claims he had informed Niculescu about his injury prior to the game. This controversy ultimately led to Coman's 10-year absence from the national team's squad. In 1978 he was called up by Ștefan Kovács, playing in a 1–0 away loss to Spain in the Euro 1980 qualifiers. His last appearance for the national team took place on 11 December 1978 in a friendly which ended in a 1–1 draw against Israel. For winning the 1962 European Under-18 Championship, Coman was decorated by President of Romania, Traian Băsescu on 25 March 2008, with the Ordinul "Meritul Sportiv" – (The Medal of "Sportive Merit") Class III.

Coman, who was nicknamed "Campionul reflexelor" (The Champion of Reflexes) by the press for his spectacular saves, claimed that he disliked his spells at Dinamo and Steaua due to their very strict rules, but he enjoyed his time at Argeș Pitești and CS Târgoviște. He was known for playing most of his career without gloves because he felt that he had a better grip that way, consequently ending up with three broken fingers. Outside the field, he was known for his bohemian lifestyle. He was considered a ladies' man and enjoyed partying and drinking in pubs, particularly with his friend and Argeș Pitești colleague Nicolae Dobrin. Coman claimed these activities never affected his performance on the football field. In 2013, Coman received the Honorary Citizen of Giurgiu title. A book about him was written by Gelu Brebenel, titled Narcis Coman - prin viață fără mănuși (Narcis Coman - through life without gloves) which was published in 2017.

Club

Steaua București

Cupa României: 1970–71 SC Bacău

Divizia B: 1974–75 CS Târgoviște

Divizia B: 1976–77 Romania U18

UEFA European Under-18 Championship: 1962

Individual

Romanian Footballer of the Year: 1978