A goal from the penalty spot condemned us to defeat away to FC Argeș, meaning that we were unable to secure the points we had hoped for. After three rounds, we have three defeats and no goals scored in the Superliga.
A goal from the penalty spot condemned us to defeat away to FC Argeș, meaning that we were unable to secure the points we had hoped for. After three rounds, we have three defeats and no goals scored in the Superliga.
Friday evening’s match produced two contrasting halves. We had 55 per cent possession in the first period and largely controlled the game, although we created little danger in attack. After the interval, the hosts took the initiative, but they still needed an unfortunate penalty to break down our defence. There is no room for the conditional in football, however: the late goal meant that we had to leave Mioveni empty-handed.
The match was preceded by a moment of remembrance for Constantin Covaciu, the masseur of Dinamo Bucharest’s second team, who lost his life on the morning of the game in a tragic road accident near Câmpulung, not far from Mioveni.
István Szabó made several changes to the starting line-up that had faced FCSB. Alex Szabó was handed a starting place on his Superliga debut, while Mátyás Tajti made his first league start for our club. Neither the distance nor the sweltering heat deterred the nearly twenty supporters from Ciuc, who encouraged the team from the sun-scorched stand.
The first opportunity fell to the hosts in the 17th minute, when Luvambo headed over from close range following a cross from the right. Four minutes later, Szilárd Veres forced his way into the penalty area and delivered a low cross, but Márton Eppel was unable to make the right run towards the ball.
In the 36th minute, Tofan could only glance Borța’s cross from the right, and the ball travelled harmlessly across the face of goal. Shortly afterwards, Rădescu attempted a volley following a short clearance but sent his effort well over the bar. The teams went into the break goalless.
FC Argeș put us under considerably more pressure at the start of the second half. In the 51st minute, the ball bounced between Rață and Luvambo near the six-yard box, but neither managed to make decisive contact. Three minutes later, Luvambo was left unmarked and headed towards goal from ten metres, but his effort lacked power and Eduard Pap made a comfortable save. In the 63rd minute, Alex Szabó produced an excellent block at the end of a quick home attack.
We had a major opportunity in the 65th minute when Márton Eppel broke through on goal, but the recovering defenders caught up with him and managed to dispossess our forward. As the closing stages approached, Moldoveanu received a good pass inside the penalty area, and the referee pointed to the spot following a foul by János Hegedűs. The player who had been fouled stepped up and converted the penalty in the 79th minute (1–0).
There were no further goals, meaning that we suffered our third consecutive league defeat.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, István Szabó stressed that while the run of results might suggest a difficult spell, he had not seen any major problems with the team’s attitude or determination.
“If we only look at the fact that we have three defeats from three matches, then we can say that we are in a difficult period. However, if we examine the games separately, the picture is different. Our first match was genuinely very poor, and I do not want to make excuses for it. We then faced one of the title contenders, FCSB, and now we have played away again, against a team considered favourites on paper. I did not feel that the players had given up: they showed determination and the right attitude throughout,” said our head coach.
István Szabó added that failing to score in three matches clearly shows that we need to improve our attacking play, although he described the team’s resilience as an encouraging sign.
“Of course, we can see that we have not scored in three matches, and we also know that more is required. We will discuss the mistakes with the team and the staff, but I do not usually bring those matters into the public domain. What could be seen, however, was that the team showed character. We definitely need to improve our attacking play.”
Our head coach also addressed the different preparation periods available to the two teams. While the hosts had a full week from Friday to Friday, we had only a few days following Sunday’s match against FCSB.
“In professional football, it is not customary to refer to this, and I am not mentioning it as an excuse either. However, it is a fact that FC Argeș prepared on a Friday-to-Friday schedule, while we played on Sunday and then had another match on Friday. In such a short period, certain phases of the weekly preparation have to be omitted. Regardless of that, I congratulate the home team. It is clear that they are working in a structured and purposeful way,” István Szabó concluded.
We will be away from home again in the fourth round, facing Farul Constanța in Ovidiu next Saturday at 6.30 pm.
Superliga, regular season, round 3
FC Argeș–FK Csíkszereda 1–0 (0–0)
Mioveni, Municipal Stadium, 2,693 spectators
Scorer: Moldoveanu (79 – penalty)
Yellow cards: Luvambo (45+2); Palmeș (48), Bota (53), Tajti (59), Anderson (62), Stahl (89)
FC Argeș: Cătălin Căbuz – Costinel Tofan, Mario Tudose, Leard Sadriu, Florin Borța – Vadim Rață (Claudiu Micovschi, 70), Roberto Sierra, Laurențiu Rădescu (O. Alagbe, 88) – Michael Idowu (Silviu Balaure, 46), Taylor Luvambo (Yanis Pîrvu, 63), Robert Moldoveanu (Guilherme Garutti, 87).
Head coach: Bogdan Andone.
FK Csíkszereda: Eduard Pap – Raul Palmeș, János Hegedűs, Alex Szabó, Lóránd Pászka – Attila Csürös, Szilárd Veres (Albert Stahl, 87), Darius Bota (Zoltán Bödő, 65), Anderson Ceará, Mátyás Tajti (Szabolcs Szalay, 65) – Márton Eppel (Ádám Czékus, 82).
Head coach: István Szabó.
Attila Rédai