Calancea making Moldovan grade

Nicolai Calancea is the most exciting young talent to have emerged in Moldova in recent years with the 21-year-old goalkeeper turning heads at FC Zimbru Chisinau.

Good news
Fourth in the Divizia Nationala table and already 15 points adrift of runaway leaders FC Sheriff, Zimbru have not been overburdened with good news this season, but the rise of Calancea has given them some cause for celebration. Establishing himself in the first team, Calancea has become the team captain and received his first Moldova call-up on 29 August 2006, his 20th birthday.

Stepping up
A Moldovan Cup winner last season, Calancea was named as his club's player of the season by fans and is now in line to be named as Moldova's top goalkeeper too. "I have made a big step up in my career," he said recently. "It's a great honour for a 21-year-old to become a regular in the starting lineup at a big club like Zimbru and to receive a regular call-up to the national side."

International debut
Calancea was third choice in Igor Dobrovolski's squad for the UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifier against Greece on 2 September 2006 after receiving his maiden call-up. He did make his debut on 6 June this year in the return fixture against the European champions, which Moldova lost 2-1, and the competition with Serghei Pascenco for the No1 shirt is expected to be fierce in the coming years.

'Calm and confident'
"Three hours before the game I heard I was going to play, when the coach named the starting lineup," he said as he reflected on his debut. "It was quite a surprise. Before the game Dobrovolski told me to play calmly and confidently, just like I do for my club. It was a good match. It's a pity we conceded a last-minute goal and gave the draw away."

Sporting family
Calancea is from a sporting family: one older brother Timofei also passed through the Zimbru academy while another big brother, Valeri, is a European champion weightlifter. Nicolai initially planned to be a striker but found his true calling after replacing an injured keeper as a ten-year-old. His decision may turn out to have been an auspicious one for Moldovan football.