Biography

An attacking midfielder born in 2003, Rares Ilie blossomed at an early age in his native Romania.

At 19, the creative right-footer, who is used to playing as a left-winger in a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 formation, played 60 games for Rapid Bucharest's first team, scoring 9 goals and providing 12 assists. He also played a part in the historic club's return to the top flight, before establishing himself with consistency.

A member of Romania's national youth teams, Rares (1.83m) has a rare profile and plenty of room for improvement.

After a first half of the season in which he played 8 games for Le Gym under Lucien Favre, Ilie was loaned out to Maccabi Tel-Aviv in the winter of 2023. In Israel, he made nine appearances and provided one assist.