Florin Constantin Niță (; born 3 July 1987) is a Romanian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
Niță started his senior career at Concordia Chiajna, before signing for Steaua București in 2013. He won six honours during his spell with the capital-based team, and at the start of 2018 earned a transfer abroad to Sparta Prague. Following a loan at Pardubice, he signed for Süper Lig side Gaziantep in 2023.
Niță recorded his debut for the Romania national team in November 2017, in a 2–0 friendly win over Turkey. He was selected for the UEFA Euro 2024, where his country topped its group and reached the round of 16.
Club career
Early career and Concordia Chiajna Born in Bucharest, Niță started playing football at the age of seven with Steaua București. In 2001, he moved to local rivals Rapid București, where he stayed for four years. He then spent his last season as a junior at Astra Ploiești.
In 2006, aged 19, Niță joined Concordia Chiajna and played his first senior matches in the Liga III, the third level of the Romanian league system. He made his Liga I debut for the team on 25 July 2011, in a 1–2 home loss to Sportul Studențesc.
Steaua București In December 2012, it was announced that Niță would return to his boyhood club Steaua București in the summer of the following year.
He started to appear frequently for the Roș-albaștrii in the 2015–16 season, in which he recorded 32 matches in all competitions. On 16 August 2016, Niță saved one of the two penalty kicks missed by Sergio Agüero in the 0–5 UEFA Champions League play-off loss to Manchester City.
In May 2017, he agreed to a new deal at the team, now named FCSB, which would have kept him in Bucharest until 2021. Niță's performances in 2017 earned him third place in Gazeta Sporturilors Romanian Footballer of the Year award, which he shared with Ștefan Radu.
Sparta Prague Niță transferred to Czech team Sparta Prague on 1 February 2018 for an undisclosed fee, rumoured to be in the region of €2 million plus €500,000 in bonuses.
In December 2021, he was named the Romanian Footballer of the Year by both the CSJ Association and the Gazeta Sporturilor daily for his performances throughout the calendar year. After falling down the pecking order, Sparta Prague loaned Niță out to fellow league side Pardubice for the remainder of the 2022–23 season.
Gaziantep On 9 September 2023, Niță signed a one-year contract with Turkish club Gaziantep, joining several compatriots including manager Marius Șumudică. He was the first-choice goalkeeper during the campaign, and amassed eight clean sheets in the Süper Lig as his team finished eleventh in the table.
Damac On 25 August 2024, Niță signed a one-year deal with Damac.
Retirement On 11 June 2026, Florin Niță announces his professional retirement.
International career On 18 March 2017, following the injury of Silviu Lung Jr., Niță was picked by manager Christoph Daum in Romania's squad for a 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Denmark. Days before his call-up, former Romanian internationals Helmut Duckadam, Gheorghe Hagi, and Laurențiu Reghecampf stated that his omissal from the squad was "unjust".
Niță made his debut for the full side on 9 November 2017, entering as a 71st-minute substitute for Costel Pantilimon in a 2–0 friendly win over Turkey in Cluj-Napoca. After Ciprian Tătărușanu announced his retirement from the national team at the end of 2020, Niță played the full 90 minutes in all three 2022 World Cup qualifying matches against North Macedonia, Germany, and Armenia in March 2021. Romania lost against the latter two opponents, but his saves were praised by media and fans alike.
On 7 June 2024, Niță was named in the squad for Euro 2024. Although he did not feature in the qualifiers, he started in all four matches his country played during the final tournament. Romania topped their group but were subsequently eliminated by the Netherlands in the round of 16.
Career statistics
Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupContinentalTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsConcordia Chiajna2007–08Liga II70——702008–09Liga II150——1502009–10Liga II290——2902010–11Liga II27000——2702011–12Liga I21000——2102012–13Liga I18020——200Total117020——1190FCSB2013–14Liga I5030—00802014–15Liga I30102000602015–16Liga I2901010103202016–17Liga I2902020904202017–18Liga I21000—80290Total87070501801170Sparta Prague2017–18Czech First League140———1402018–19Czech First League26000—202802019–20Czech First League11020—201502020–21Czech First League26010—303002021–22Czech First League15000—80230Total92030—1501100Pardubice (loan)2022–23Czech First League170———170Gaziantep2023–24Süper Lig34010——350Damac2024–25Saudi Pro League31000——310Career total3780130503304290
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsRomania20171020181020211102022602024110202510Total310
HonoursSteaua BucureștiLiga I: 2013–14, 2014–15 Cupa României: 2014–15 Cupa Ligii: 2014–15, 2015–16 Supercupa României: 2013Sparta PragueCzech First League: 2022–23 Czech Cup: 2019–20Individual'''Gazeta Sporturilor Romanian Footballer of the Year: 2021, third place: 2017 CSJ Gala Fotbalului Românesc'' Romanian Footballer of the Year: 2021 Liga I Best Goalkeeper: 2016–17 Liga I Team of the Season: 2016–17
References
External links