Dan Petrescu has resigned as coach of FC Unirea Urziceni, leaving the side he led to their first Romanian title last season joint-top of Liga 1.

Heady rise
The 42-year-old former Romanian international has been synonymous with Unirea's recent rise from an unheralded provincial side to domestic titlewinners competing in the UEFA Champions League. Hired by the newly promoted club in October 2006, he led Unirea to the Romanian Cup final in 2008 and into Europe for the first time, then to their maiden title last term. In their first taste of the UEFA Champions League this season, Unirea finished a creditable third in Group G to qualify for the UEFA Europa League.

'Difficult moments'
"These are difficult moments for me, but a coach and a man has to take decisions," Petrescu said. "It has been a wonderful time. I express my gratitude to everybody I worked with and especially to the players, who are the most important asset of any club. I have several offers, all from abroad, and I hope to make the right decision just as I have throughout my career."

New face
As Petrescu considers his next move, Unirea general manager Mihai Stoica said he will look abroad for a permanent replacement. "Our next coach will be a foreign one who has never worked in Romania before," he said. "The only question is whether he comes now or at the end of the season." Unirea, who are level on 34 points with CFR 1907 Cluj and FC Steaua Bucureşti at the top of Liga 1, are away to Liverpool FC in the first leg of their UEFA Europa League Round of 32 tie on 18 February.