The management of Politehnica Timisoara has started discussions with the local and county authorities to find a quick solution to the problem of sports infrastructure in the city, specifically the football stadium. Florin Drăgan, rector of Politehnica Timisoara University and member of the club’s Board of Directors, spoke today at a press conference about the urgent need for a committed plan, especially in the context of the announcement about the closure of the “Dan Paltinisanu” arena.

“Last week’s event was totally unpleasant for the club, but also for the whole city, the county. We managed to make a national embarrassment of ourselves. That’s the situation. We have to say because it was. Let’s see you on TV in the evening, lights out, TIMIȘOARA! It’s pretty sad. It’s not a situation that’s been going on for two years or four years. It’s a situation that’s been going on for 20-30 years – the sports infrastructure – and if we can’t get everyone around the table, we’re not going to have much on the football side. Than what Politehnica can hold through its bases, other sports more. We’re lucky that the Science was supposed to get in on that grandstand thing. Considering the price of materials that construction has gone up, it won’t be able to go in… we’ll play there. But that’s the luck, you realize. The start of the work has been delayed. We will play there, as we play the next (home) televised game against Hermannstadt. We will see the Colterm work, we will see everything, how it looks, I don’t know if it will be very ok”, said Florin Drăgan, UPT rector.

“I have discussed with the president of the County Council only by phone, because now he is away. We have to make a meeting in which we assume some deadlines at county, city level. And we discussed it at the Prefecture, because there are different political involvements and we discuss it with everyone who can count in the decisions we make. We also had a discussion with the City Hall. We’re trying to get everyone around the table. Not only Politehnica, we are trying to bring Ripensia to that discussion, it concerns them too, and if necessary other entities. But I don’t want a political table, where we come out and say everything will be great. I want us to take some things on board. I don’t know in detail, infrastructure, everything, where we can play, but I can say that if Paltinisanu remains closed, I don’t know what we’ll do… I’m talking about any team. And at the moment there’s no point in talking about demolishing Paltinisanu for a year or maybe even two, because I don’t know where we play. There’s no question of us playing in the first league. If we aim to go to League I and we aim to go to League I next season, you don’t really have anywhere to play…”, Florin Dragan added.

He remains optimistic about the meeting planned for the immediate future: “We need to identify with all the authorities, solutions for one, two, five years. We are also talking about Electrica, if something can be built there by the Municipality; about the Lego stadium, which is in trouble, and it will take a long time there too. We can no longer come and say, next year we’ll play wherever we can… or we’ll play somewhere else, but where and for how many years? In Sibiu or in Severin, because we can’t play in Arad… That’s the infrastructure after all if we look at this part of the country (…) I’m sure we’ll have that meeting soon, the next two weeks, where it’s clear that we have to have a plan from the summer, an assumed plan, if we can’t do that, then we have a major infrastructure problem in the county…”

Chancellor Univ. Politehnica also spoke about the 2019 expertise requested by CJ Timis, which indicates an unsafe old stadium. Florin Drăgan appreciates that the authorities have assumed during this period that the arena will remain in operation, but also calls for a solution to be found so that the stadium can reopen safely:

“It’s true, Paltinisanu has some problems. There is an expertise, but we must look at that expertise and not take decisions the day after an unpleasant event, because we take them in the heat of the moment and I don’t think they are the best ones. We have to look for a solution so that we can reopen Paltinisanu. Because if we can’t play at Paltinisanu, I don’t know where we’ll play next season. Well, we play on Electrica, but at most League 2, what can you expect!? Or, let the City Hall build a grandstand there, let’s think of a 5-6,000 seat stadium, to be ready in a year. But from autumn I don’t know where we’ll play with Paltinisanu closed, if it’s closed and demolished it’s one story, if it’s closed and stays there for two more years it’s another story… Politehnica has people who can see the expertise, understand, I think we can find solutions. If you can play with a maximum of 10,000 people, that’s the situation. We play as best we can with some work that can be done. But let’s see what CJ Timis, Timisoara City Hall can do (…) It’s not normal to close down if the electrical installation is down”.