Timofte takes Politehnica course

Experienced man 
Timofte, who represented Romania at the 1990 FIFA World Cup finals, will work under head coach Gheorghe Multescu. Timofte has plenty of experience of European football having played for KFC Uerdingen 05 in Germany and Samsunspor in Turkey, where he played under Multescu.

No contract 
Timofte, who also played for FC Dinamo Bucuresti and CS Jiul Petrosani in Romania, will work without a contract, alongside the club's Turkish assistant coach Yuksel Yesilova. He has been away for the game for the last four years aside from a brief coaching spell in Petrosani.

New signings 
Politehnica are prime candidates for relegation, sitting 15th in the 16-team first division. The club have signed two new players in the hope of a further lift. Experienced central defender Florin Batranu and promising midfield player Pavel Sola have moved to the Dan Paltinisan stadium on three-month contracts after training with the team for four weeks. The pair have the chance to earn a one-year extension to their contracts.

High hopes 
Batranu, 32, has had a long career in Romanian football, including a previous spell with Politehnica. His other clubs include FC National Bucuresti, Dinamo and UM Timisoara and he has also played abroad with Dynamo Berlin in Germany and for Kispest Honvéd FC in Hungary. He had been without a club since the autumn, however. "I am well integrated in my new team and I hope that I'll be able to start the last six championship games of this edition", he said.

Back in top flight 
The 25-year-old Sola, meanwhile, has joined from second division FC Bihor Oradea. Earlier in his career, he played in the top flight with FC Extensiv Craiova.