FC Zimbru Chișinău


Fotbal Club Zimbru is a professional football club based in Chișinău, Moldova, that competes in the Divizia Națională, the highest tier of Moldovan football.
Founded in the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1947, Zimbru entered the Soviet Top League in 1956 and participated in 11 seasons before their last relegation in 1983. After the independence of Moldova in 1991, the team established itself as an early force in the country, winning all of the first five national championships and eight of the first nine, but have not won since. Zimbru have also won six Moldovan Cups and one Moldovan Super Cup.
Galben-verzii play their home matches at the 10,400-seater Zimbru Stadium.

History

Zimbru Chișinău was formed in 1947 in the Moldovan Soviet Republic. 'Zimbru' is a Romanian word for a form of European bison, but the club also previously functioned under names such as Dinamo, Burevestnik, Moldova, Avântul, and Nistru. The Soviet Era was spent mostly in Class B of the regional league until eventual promotion to Class A. The club then flitted between Class A and Class B as well as spending time in the Soviet Top League and First League. In total, Zimbru spent 11 seasons in the Top League between 1956 and 1983. Zimbru had their biggest success in 1956 when they finished in 6th place out of 12 in the Soviet Top League and in 1963 when they reached the quarter-finals of the Soviet Cup.

Zimbru's fortunes changed after the fall of the USSR and the establishment of the Republic of Moldova. The club won all five of the initial seasons of the Moldovan National Division, and apart from finishing as runners-up to Chișinău rivals Constructorul Chișinău in 1996–97, won eight of the first nine championships. Zimbru have also won the Moldovan Cup six times, including a double in 1997–98 and the Moldovan Super Cup once.

Crest and colours

Since its foundation, Zimbru's colours always was yellow and green. Throughout history, Zimbru Chișinău had many logos. Traditional colours were always present on club crests.

Stadium

FC Zimbru's home ground is Zimbru Stadium, a football-specific stadium in Botanica sector of Chișinău. It was opened in 2006. The stadium has a natural grass playing surface, and its capacity is 10,400.

Rivalries

In the 1990s, Zimbru's rival was the other team from Chișinău, Constructorul Chișinău. Then Contructorul was dissolved. In 1997, a new team was founded in Tiraspol, Sheriff Tiraspol. In a few years, Sheriff was promoted to the first league and became a force in Moldovan football. Considering the strength of team and the tensions between Moldovans and separatist Transnistrians, the match between Zimbru and Sheriff became a derby, the most important match in country. Thus, it has been named "Derby of Moldova", being labelled even as "Moldovan El Clasico".
Another rivalry was established in the mid 2000s when Dacia Chișinău, another team from Chișinău, became one of Moldova's top teams. The match between them is known as "The Derby of the capital".

Honours

[Moldova]

Player of the year

Zimbru players who received the award Moldovan Footballer of the Year:
YearWinner
1992 Alexandru Spiridon
1993 Alexandru Curtianu
1994 Serghei Cleșcenco
1995 Ion Testemițanu
1997 Ion Testemițanu
1999 Sergiu Epureanu
2002 Boris Cebotari

League history

Table

European record

;UEFA Champions League
SeasonRoundOpponentsHome legAway legAggregate
1993–94PR Beitar Jerusalem1–10–21–3
1998–99Q1 Újpest1–01–32–3
1999–00Q1 St Patrick's Athletic5–05–010–0
1999–00Q2 Dinamo Tbilisi2–01–23–2
1999–00Q3 PSV Eindhoven0–00–20–2
2000–01Q1 KF Tirana3–23–26–4
2000–01Q2 Maribor2–00–12–1
2000–01Q3 Sparta Prague0–10–10–2

;UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
SeasonRoundOpponentsHome legAway legAggregate
1997–98QR Shakhtar Donetsk1–10–31–4

;UEFA Cup
SeasonRoundOpponentsHome legAway legAggregate
1994–95PR Budapest Honvéd0–11–41–5
1995–96PR Hapoel Tel Aviv2–00–02–0
1995–96R1 RAF Jelgava1–02–13–1
1995–96R2 Sparta Prague0–23–43–6
1996–97PR Hajduk Split0–41–21–6
1999–00R1 Tottenham Hotspur0–00–30–3
2000–01R1 Hertha BSC1–20–21–4
2001–02QR Gaziantepspor0–01–41–4
2002–03QR IFK Göteborg3–12–25–3
2002–03R1 Real Betis0–21–21–4
2003–04QR Litex Lovech2–00–02–0
2003–04R1 Aris1–11–22–3
2006–07Q1 Qarabağ1–12–1 3–2
2006–07Q2 Metalurh Zaporizhya0–00–30–3
2007–08Q1 Artmedia Bratislava2–21–13–3

;UEFA Europa League
SeasonRoundOpponentsHome legAway legAggregate
2009–10Q1 Okzhetpes1–22–03–2
2009–10Q2 Paços de Ferreira0–00–10–1
2012–13Q1 Bangor City2–10–02–1
2012–13Q2 Young Boys1–0 0–11–1
2014–15Q1 FK Shkëndija2–01–23–2
2014–15Q2 CSKA Sofia0–01–11–1
2014–15Q3 SV Grödig0–12–12–2
2014–15PO PAOK1–00–41–4
2016–17Q1 Chikhura Sachkhere0–13–23–3
2016–17Q2 Osmanlıspor2–20–52–7

;Notes: PR – preliminary round. QR – qualifying round. R1 – First round. R2 – Second round
Q1, Q2, Q3 – qualifying rounds. PO – play-off round.

Club officials

Technical staff

RoleName
Head coach Vlad Goian
Vice coach Simeon Bulgaru
Assistant coach Issa Atamao
Club doctor Adrian Mihaluța
Masseur Petru Caraman

Club management

RoleName
General director Iulia Petuhov
Technical director Zsolt Hadnagy

Former players

Former managers