 He also entered his name in the competition's history books, after breaking the record for the most bookings in a single campaign (19 yellow cards and one red).After initially hesitating because of the requests of his partner, Săpunaru signed a one-year deal at fellow league team Elche CF on 25 July 2013.He totalled only nine appearances in his only campaign and was also sent off twice, while his sole goal opened a 1–2 loss at Valencian Community neighbours Levante UD on 13 December.