It cannot be said that the final match of 2025 unfolded as hoped for FK Csíkszereda: title contenders Universitatea Craiova sent us home with a crushing 5–0 defeat from the capital of Oltenia.

It cannot be said that the final match of 2025 unfolded as hoped for FK Csíkszereda: title contenders Universitatea Craiova sent us home with a crushing 5–0 defeat from the capital of Oltenia.

It did not matter that the “Students” were coming off a morale-shattering UEFA Conference League elimination in Athens against AEK, a match described as a tragedy by the local press. What mattered more for the blue-and-whites was the chance to go into the winter break at the top of the table with a Monday night victory. Accordingly, coach Filipe Coelho made only minimal changes to his starting line-up, having no reason to rest players. On our side, compared to previous matches, Róbert Ilyés opted for three central defenders, meaning that in defence we fielded a five-man back line for the first time in a long while.

Our team was accompanied on this long trip by a passionate group of around two dozen supporters, who tried to lift the players’ spirits even in the darkest moments – the outcome of the evening was certainly not due to their lack of support.

The hosts opened the scoring in the 18th minute, when Baiaram cut through our defence like a knife through butter and Matei arrived perfectly in the middle to make it 1–0. In the 24th minute, Baiaram’s header found the net again, but the goal was ruled out for offside. Misfortune struck in the 32nd minute, as Bakos had to be carried off on a stretcher, with initial diagnoses suggesting a serious injury that could sideline him for months. Before we could even make the substitution, Matei again received the ball unmarked inside the box and placed it into the bottom right corner: 2–0. Still in the first half, the hosts extended their lead to three, with Baiaram once again unstoppable in our penalty area, this time providing an assist for Mora: 3–0.

In the second half, hopes of an improvement quickly faded. Veres and Anderson were both forced off due to injury, meaning all three substitutions made by Róbert Ilyés were compulsory. To make matters worse, Palmeș was also lost for the next round after receiving a second yellow card and being sent off. The hosts showed no mercy, and two goals from Al Hamlawi, who replaced Baiaram at half-time, sealed the humiliating 5–0 final score.

At the post-match press conference, a visibly dejected Róbert Ilyés answered journalists’ questions. The head coach first congratulated Craiova on their deserved victory and praised the home crowd, before stating that the three points had probably gone to the best team in the league. “As for our performance, there is little to add: what we showed tonight proves that many players do not deserve to wear the FK Csíkszereda shirt. In football, attitude makes the difference, and when there is no proper attitude, there is an appropriate reward. We suffered a straightforward 5–0 defeat today, fully deserved. I am not only sad, but extremely disappointed by what happened,” the coach said, among other things.

Following this round, Superliga teams head into the winter break. FK Csíkszereda’s squad will enjoy a short rest, with preparations for the second half of the season beginning on January 2 with the team’s regrouping, before travelling, as planned, to a training camp in Turkey the following day.

Superliga, Regular Season, Round 21
Universitatea Craiova – FK Csíkszereda 5–0 (3–0)
Craiova, Ion Oblemenco Stadium, approx. 7,000 spectators
Referees: Roman George Cătălin, Neacșu George Florin, Ghiciulescu Raul Constantin. VAR: Dima Iulian. AVAR: Busi Cătălin. Fourth official: Robu Ovidiu.
Goals: Matei (18’, 33’), Mora (41’), Al Hamlawi (69’, 86’)
Yellow cards: Palmeș (31’, 89’), Ferenczi (73’)
Red card: Palmeș (89’)

Universitatea Craiova: Popescu Iulian Laurențiu – Romanchuk Oleksandr, Screciu Vladimir Ionuț, Stevanović Nikola –
Mora Montoya Carlos Andrei, Matei David (Băsceanu Luca Constantin 68’), Mekvabishvili Anzor, Cicâldău Alexandru (Houri Lyes Hafid 87’), Teles Pereira Nunes da Silva Samuel (Ștefan Florin Bogdan 68’) –
Bassey Etim Monday (Muntean Denis Ioan 83’), Baiaram Ștefan (Al Hamlawi Asad 46’).
Head coach: Filipe Coelho.

FK Csíkszereda: Pap Eduard Adrian – Pászka Lóránd, Celić Maks Juraj, Csürös Attila, Palmeș Raul Ioan, Ferenczi János –
Veres Szilárd (Erwin Bloj 62’), Jebari Soufiane, Bakos Ervin Raul (Előd Tóth-Pál 35’) –
Anderson Ceará (Szabolcs Szalay 69’), Márton Eppel.
Head coach: Róbert Ilyés.