Dan Nicolae Nistor (born 6 May 1988) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Liga I club Universitatea Cluj.
After starting out in the lower leagues, Nistor made over 90 Liga I appearances for Pandurii Târgu Jiu between 2010 and 2013. His performances earned him a move abroad to Evian, but was used sparingly in France and soon returned to Pandurii. Since 2016, he has spent his career with Romanian clubs Dinamo BucureÃÂti, CFR Cluj, Universitatea Craiova, and Universitatea Cluj.
Nistor made his senior international debut for Romania in November 2012, in a 2âÂÂ1 victory over for Belgium.
Nistor did not play football at junior level, but in 2005 joined his hometown club AS RucÃÂr in the lower leagues. Roughly two years later, during a match against the reserves of ArgeÃÂ PiteÃÂti, he impressed InternaÃÂional Curtea de ArgeÃÂ owner Benone LazÃÂr who was in the attendance. Nistor was then transferred to the latter club at the cost of seven football balls.
After his first season at InternaÃÂional in the third league, Nistor was loaned to Muscelul Câmpulung and Dacia Mioveni, respectively. Upon his return to Curtea de Argeàin 2010, the team withdrew from the Liga I championship due to financial issues.
Nistor signed a four-year contract with Liga I team Pandurii Târgu Jiu in the summer of 2010. He played his first match in the top division on 23 July that year, featuring the full 90 minutes in a goalless draw with Unirea Urziceni. On 10 April 2011, he scored his first Liga I goal in a 4âÂÂ2 home victory over Victoria BrÃÂneÃÂti.
Nistor made 35 appearances and netted six goals all competition comprised in the 2012âÂÂ13 season, as Pandurii finished second in the championship and subsequently qualified for the UEFA Europa League. He made his debut in the latter competition on 16 July 2013, in a goalless away draw with Levadia Tallinn in the second qualifying round. His team went further after 4âÂÂ0 on aggregate, and he recorded his first European goal in a 1âÂÂ1 draw against Hapoel Tel Aviv on 1 August.
In August 2013, amid interest from FC Steaua BucureÃÂti, CFR Cluj, and Málaga, Nistor was transferred by French club Evian for a rumoured fee of â¬800,000. He failed to establish himself as a starter for Les Roses, only amassing six Ligue 1 matches during the first half of the 2013âÂÂ14 campaign. As a result, Nistor made a controversial statement about Evian's staff, saying that he did not play more because of his nationality.
On 22 January 2014, Nistor was sent on loan to his former team Pandurii Târgu Jiu for a period of five months, which was later extended for the 2014âÂÂ15 season. In the summer of 2015, after being released by Evian, he again joined the Alb-albaÃÂtrii as a free agent.
On 31 August 2016, Nistor agreed to a two-year deal with fellow league club Dinamo BucureÃÂti. He won his first career trophy on 20 May 2017, after "the Red Dogs" came victorious 2âÂÂ0 in the Cupa Ligii final against ACS Poli TimiÃÂoara.
On 10 July 2017, Nistor moved to CFR Cluj in a swap deal which took Filipe Nascimento in the opposite direction. Under the management of Dan Petrescu, he played 18 games across all competitions without scoring. In January 2018, he publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with Petrescu's communication skills and his recent lack of playing time.
Nistor terminated his contract with CFR Cluj and rejoined Dinamo BucureÃÂti on 13 January 2018. He was assigned the number 10 shirt and played his first match upon return on 4 February, in a 2âÂÂ2 Liga I draw with Universitatea Craiova.
On 29 July 2018, Nistor scored in a cross-town derby with FCSB, which ended 3âÂÂ3. The following month, FCSB reportedly made several bids for the transfer of the midfielder; Dinamo however rejected each offer and proceeded in contract extension talks. Nistor registered 13 assists across the 2018âÂÂ19 league season, the most for a player in the previous ten years, and was named by Liga Profesionistàde Fotbal in the best team of the campaign.
On 6 January 2020, Nistor signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with Universitatea Craiova for an undisclosed transfer fee. He made his debut on the 31st, in a 3âÂÂ1 Liga I victory over Gaz Metan MediaÃÂ, and scored his first goals on 4 March in a 2âÂÂ3 Cupa României loss to Politehnica IaÃÂi.
On 23 June 2020, Nistor scored his first goal in the championship for Craiova in a 2âÂÂ1 home defeat of BotoÃÂani. He then converted the winning penalty in a 2âÂÂ1 victory over FCSB on 12 July. On 3 August, Nistor opened the scoring in an eventual 1âÂÂ3 home loss to CFR Cluj in the final fixture; the result meant that Craiova finished second in the table, while his former club won its third title in a row.
On 13 February 2023, Nistor moved to Universitatea Cluj, the city rival of his former club CFR Cluj.
On 4 June 2013, Nistor made his international debut for Romania in a 4âÂÂ0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago at the Arena NaÃÂionalàin Bucharest. He previously played in two unofficial friendlies against Belgium and Poland, respectively.
His next caps for the nation only came during late 2019 under manager Cosmin Contra, appearing as a substitute in both UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers against Norway (1âÂÂ1 home draw) and Spain (0âÂÂ5 home loss).
In February 2012, Nistor was caught driving an Audi A5 without a license and fined accordingly.
He has been married since June 2013, with fellow footballer Mihai Pintilii acting as best man. His spouse Cosmina gave birth to a son in April 2017.
InternaÃÂional Curtea de ArgeÃÂ
Pandurii Târgu Jiu
Dinamo BucureÃÂti
CFR Cluj
Universitatea Craiova
Universitatea Cluj
Individual