They finished third in the 2012–13 Liga I, as well as winning the Cupa României for the third time in their history. Petrolul competed in UEFA Europa League, following an 18-year absence in European competitions. After defeating Víkingur Gøta and Vitesse Arnhem, they were eliminated in the play-off round by Swansea City. During the winter transfer window, the team brought Adrian Mutu, a former Romanian international, which attracted media attention.[1] In January 2014, German automobile manufacturer Opel became Petrolul's shirt sponsor.[2] In April, Petrolul had the chance to qualify for their second consecutive Cupa României final, but lost the second leg of the semi-final against rivals Astra Giurgiu (2–1), after a 0–0 result at home.[3] The fans blamed Petrolul's administration for selling two of their best players (Hamza Younés and Damien Boudjemaa), and bringing Adrian Mutu and Ianis Zicu, who did not live up to expectations. Some also considered that the new manager, Răzvan Lucescu, wasn't a suitable replacer for Cosmin Contra, who left the club for Getafe in March.[4] Petrolul came third in the Liga I for a second successive season, thus again participating in the UEFA Europa League second qualifying round.
Players
Jucatori de prima echipa
At the end of the season.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Source: Liga I(in Romanian) Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored. (C) Champions Notes:
^Vaslui did not receive a license for financial reasons.[5] Dinamo București filed for insolvency, thus didn't get an UEFA licence. CFR Cluj got their Europa League spot.[6]
