 He was selected by the fans "Dinamo Player of the Year", gaining 58% of the votes.In March 2001, Niculae continued where he left off the previous year, netting against FC Naţional and Rapid Bucureşti from the penalty spot.He helped his team to reach the Romanian Cup final, netting in both legs of the semi-finals against Sportul Studenţesc, Dinamo claiming a 5–3 win on aggregate.