Spectacular goals for most people are standard fare for Eric Bicfalvi. Not blessed with natural speed, at times the Romanian playmaker can seemingly slow time itself down with the stunning acrobatic beauty of his attempts. He has become part of the fabric in Ekaterinburg after embracing life at the RPL’s easternmost club after a slightly unorthodox career path. But how exactly did he earn the admiration and affections of Ural, and how did he get there in the first place?

The story so far

For a man whose currency is remarkable goalscoring feats, Eric Bicfalvi had to wait some time for his first international goal. Just over two months before turning 33, he came off the bench to earn Romania a point away to Northern Ireland in the UEFA Nations League in November, six years to the day after his full debut for the senior side. To date he has earned eight caps - just two of which were starts - and that solitary goal to his name.

He could have pulled on a different international shirt had events transpired differently. Shortly before his first call-up for Romania, he had reportedly been open to representing Hungary due to links on his mother’s side, but no call came from the Mighty Magyars’ successors. After Bicfalvi’s father Marius passed away when Eric was just six years old, it was his grandfather Alexandru who was the formative influence on his footballing development, taking his grandson to his first match.

Alexandru was a useful footballer himself, playing for Victoria in Carei, the city of Eric’s birth, and even reportedly getting close to the Romanian youth team. His father and uncle had both also played, but both as central defenders; it was his grandfather who passed on more to his game, having also played as a number 10. That creative streak was imbued in Bicfalvi from a young age. While still playing in his homeland, he used to love retiring to his own personal space to paint with oils, painting whatever and however his mood dictated.

At the age of 17 he moved to Jiul Petrosani and took some of his paintings with him, but had some of them stolen. His creative talents could not be taken away though, even if they took a while to shine through. In his first full season at Jiul, he failed to score a single goal in 16 appearances, but did enough to impress the management at Steaua Bucharest in the summer of 2007. Arriving at such a historic club as an unproven youngster could have been daunting, but he had the backing of the perfect mentor - none other than his idol, Hagi himself.

The legendary playmaker arrived at his former club as manager at the same time as Bicfalvi, and entrusted the then 18-year-old with shackling former World Cup winner Rivaldo in a pre-season friendly against AEK Athens. “I went out on the field and listened to my teammates’' tips on how to adjust,” Bicfalvi recalled to Oblgazeta.ru this week. “And you know what: in this game, I just ‘killed’ Rivaldo. I didn't give him a chance.”

Only four goals across the next five years didn’t portend a reputation that would develop later on, although he did win the Romanina Cup against rivals Dinamo Bucharest in the final in 2011. A move to the Ukrainian top flight with Volyn Lutsk in 2012 saw him become a first-choice starter in a slightly more advanced position, as he managed more goals in his first season than in his entire career up until that point put together. It was his third season that really saw him take off though; 17 goals for a side that had scraped clear of relegation the year before saw him moved into a centre-forward role and grab the international attention. 

At the end of the season he made the bold move to the Chinese Super League with Liaoning, but it was only a brief stay as he failed to score in 12 appearances. A return to Bucharest with Dinamo was equally punctuated - although he scored on his debut against former side Steaua, and in the Cup Final which was lost to CFR Cluj on penalties - before he finally moved to Russia with Tom Tomsk. A difficult few months for the newly-promoted club on the pitch saw him picked up in the winter break by Ural Ekaterinburg.

A winner on his debut against bitter rivals Amkar Perm set the tone for a tale that wound its way to the Russian Cup Final in 2017, and countless dramatic moments since. As things stand he is third on Ural’s all-time top goalscorers’ list in Russian championships with 27, behind Igor Khankeev (32) and current Ural manager Yury Matveev (42). Having signed a two-year contract extension this summer, and reached eight goals in all competitions this campaign already, there is every chance he could reign supreme before he bows out.

Did you know?

Bicfalvi was born on the same day as arguably the greatest Romanian player of all time: Gheorghe Hagi. The comparisons between the two are inevitable to some degree given that they are both playmakers who were built with intelligence and ball skill, and although Bicfalvi himself is anxious to not claim parallels to the former Barcelona and Galatasaray great, he has always wanted the number 10 shirt wherever he has been as a sign of admiration.

Plays like…

Guti. The Real Madrid magician had a languid style that bore more than a passing resemblance to Bicfalvi, with both relying much more on the cerebral side of the game to succeed than brute athletic prowess. Both possessed an uncanny ability to see the game three steps of most contemporaries, and were capable of the most outrageous technical moments.

What they say

"Hagi was a real football player. I want to follow in his footsteps and succeed in at least a quarter of what he has achieved. Every year when I celebrate my birthday, my colleagues tease me." - a teenage Eric Bicfalvi on emulating his idol Gheorghe Hagi

“He is one of the best and talented midfielders that Romanian football has. He is a good recoverer, but he also does very well on the offensive phase.” - Gheorghe Hagi on his former player Eric Bicfalvi

“Eric is our leader, and his absence is always felt.” - Ural manager Yury Matveev