| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Adrian Ion Pigulea | ||
| Date of birth | (1968-05-12)12 May 1968 (age 57) | ||
| Place of birth | Strehaia, Romania | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Armătura Strehaia | |||
| Universitatea Craiova | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1987–1988 | Electromureș Târgu-Mureș | ||
| 1988–1992 | Universitatea Craiova | 82 | (16) |
| 1992–1993 | Aris Limassol | 24 | (6) |
| 1993–1995 | Universitatea Craiova | 43 | (5) |
| 1995–2001 | Național București | 132 | (18) |
| Total | 281 | (45) | |
| International career | |||
| 1991 | Romania | 1 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Adrian Pigulea (born 12 May 1968) is a retired Romanianfootball striker.[1][2]
Pigulea was born on 12 May 1968 inStrehaia, Romania and began playing junior-level football at local club Armătura.[3][4] He started to play senior football in 1987 atDivizia B club Electromureș Târgu-Mureș.[3][4] In 1988 he joinedUniversitatea Craiova where on 4 September he made hisDivizia A debut under coachGheorghe Constantin in a 5–0 away loss toArgeș Pitești.[3][4][5] Pigulea helped the club winThe Double in the1990–91 season under the guidance of coachSorin Cârțu in which he contributed with 12 goals scored in 31 league appearances, being the team's second top-scorer, with one goal behindGheorghe Ciurea.[3][4][6] He also played as a starter until the 87th minute when he was replaced withGheorghe Craioveanu in the 2–1 win overFC Bacău in theCupa României final.[3][4][7]
In 1992, Pigulea played one season in theCypriot First Division forAris Limassol, his only experience outside Romania.[3] Afterwards he returned for two seasons at "U" Craiova, in both of which the team finished second in the league, also reaching the1994 Cupa României final where he did not play in the 2–1 loss toGloria Bistrița.[3][8] In 1995 he joinedNațional București where in the first two seasons he was again runner-up in the league.[3] They also reached the1997 Cupa României final where coachFlorin Halagian used Pigulea in the first half, replacing him withCătălin Liță for the second in the eventual 4–2 loss toSteaua București.[9] Under Halagian, he also representedThe Bankers in all six games in the1996–97 UEFA Cup edition, eliminatingPartizan Belgrade andChornomorets Odesa in the first rounds, the campaign ending after a 3–1 aggregate loss toClub Brugge.[3][10] Across his career, Pigulea made a total of 27 appearances with seven goals scored in European competitions (including six games with three goals in theIntertoto Cup), managing to score a hat-trick for Național againstCwmbran Town in a 7–0 win in the1997–98 Cup Winners' Cup qualifying round.[1][3][11] The2000–01 season spent with Național was the last of Pigulea's career, having a total of 257 Divizia A matches with 40 goals scored.[3]
Pigulea played a single match forRomania on 28 August 1991 when coachMircea Rădulescu sent him in the 60th minute to replaceIon Timofte in a friendly againstUSA which ended with a 2–0 loss.[12][13]
Pigulea married Clara, the daughter of former Universitatea Craiova strikerIon Oblemenco.[14]
Universitatea Craiova
Național București