This may have been the closest we have come this season to claiming a point or points away from home, but a debatable refereeing decision also played a part in denying us once again.

This may have been the closest we have come this season to claiming a point or points away from home, but a debatable refereeing decision also played a part in denying us once again. Lima’s first-half goal was disallowed following a VAR review, before Petrolul capitalised on our mistakes after the interval to win the match 2–0.

We took to the pitch at the Ilie Oană Stadium in Ploiești wearing an unusual red-white-red kit, with around a dozen members of the Lokálpatrióták supporters’ group also present to cheer on our team. There had been plenty of discussion about the condition of the pitch ahead of the match, and the surface was indeed unworthy of the top flight. According to reports, repair work will begin on the most heavily damaged areas following the fixture.

István Szabó was forced to reorganise his defence because of injuries. Răzvan Trif was injured in the match against Dinamo, while Raul Palmeș suffered an unfortunate accident during the warm-up before the final training session, meaning neither player was available to the coaching staff. Gabriel Araújo Lima made his first start for FK, while Dušan Vuković made his debut in the red and black colours during the second half.

We began the match brightly: Lima tried his luck from around 16 metres as early as the third minute, but his shot went narrowly wide. In the 12th minute, our defence was left exposed after we lost possession, but Rodrigo Martins headed over the crossbar from just two and a half metres. Five minutes later, Szabolcs Nyitra shot wide from 20–22 metres.

In the 20th minute, it appeared that we had taken the lead. Following a physical challenge, Márton Eppel played Albert Stahl through, whose shot was saved by Lukas Zima, but Lima reacted to the rebound and bundled the ball into the net from close range. Referee Sorin Vădana was called to the VAR monitor and subsequently deemed the challenge between Eppel and Sergiu Hanca to be a foul, disallowing the goal. The decision appeared debatable, particularly as the referee had allowed the more physical, shoulder-to-shoulder challenges up to that point.

In the 28th minute, Paul Papp brought Eppel down around 17 metres from goal, but the resulting free kick taken by the fouled player struck the wall. At the other end, Leonardo Teixeira found himself in a shooting position, but curled the ball narrowly over the crossbar from inside the penalty area. In the 38th minute, Alejandro Bran Flores curled a free kick towards goal from close to the touchline and a tight angle, with Eduard Pap managing to keep it out with some difficulty. The final chance of the first half once again fell to us: Eppel received the ball in front of goal but, under pressure from the defenders, was unable to direct it properly towards the target, and the teams went into the interval with the score still goalless.

Ádám Czékus replaced Lima at the start of the second half, but Petrolul ruthlessly punished an individual error in the 47th minute. During our build-up, Lóránd Pászka lost possession after the ball took an unpredictable bounce on the poor surface, and Rodrigo Martins finished the hosts’ quick move by firing into the far corner (1–0).

After falling behind, we attempted to change the course of the match, with Nino Kukovec and Dušan Vuković both coming on in the 66th minute. Three minutes later, however, Petrolul doubled their advantage. Bran Flores delivered an accurate free kick from the left into the goalmouth, where we failed to track the advancing Paul Papp, and the defender turned the ball into the net from close range (2–0).

In the 74th minute, Vuković tested Zima with a powerful shot, but the home goalkeeper made a comfortable save. Attila Csürös and Darius Cristian Bota were also given opportunities in the closing stages, but Petrolul closed down the spaces and we were unable to score a consolation goal. Our team therefore remained without a point after its sixth away league match of the season.

Following the final whistle, István Szabó said that the team had successfully carried out its pre-match plan during the first half and that the controversially disallowed goal had fundamentally influenced the course of the game.

“I genuinely felt that in the first half we managed to carry out on the pitch what we had discussed. It is unfortunate that, although the referee allowed physical play, he made a different decision at our goal following the intervention of VAR. I consider it a very poor decision. Obviously, it would have been a completely different situation had we gone into the dressing room at half-time with a 1–0 lead. At the beginning of the second half, however, one of my key players made a major mistake. In my opinion, on a pitch like this, the ball should have been cleared, and from that point onwards Petrolul were able to play their own game. It was already difficult for us to recover. The hosts played to their greatest strength, building their game around quick transitions. Although we made substitutions, we were unable to score even a consolation goal. We definitely need to examine why it repeatedly happens to us that after conceding one goal, we let in another shortly afterwards. We have to change that. New players arrived this week, and several of them were already given minutes in the second half. I believe that after the three-week break, our team will clearly improve in terms of quality,” our head coach said.

The league now enters a three-week international break, during which our team will play two friendly matches. Our next league fixture will be at home to Universitatea Craiova at the Municipal Stadium in Miercurea Ciuc on Sunday, 11 October, kicking off at 6 p.m.

Match details

Superliga, regular season, Round 10

Petrolul Ploiești–FK Csíkszereda 2–0 (0–0)

Ploiești, Ilie Oană Stadium, attendance: 3,832

Petrolul Ploiești: Lukas Zima – Mark Țuțu (Adam Mahmoud Paul Zaian, 87), Paul Papp (captain), Malula Breston Sumbula, Andres Mihai Dumitrescu – Sergiu Cătălin Hanca, Luciano Gaston Vega Albornoz, Alejandro Jesus Bran Flores (Mario Alexandru Ioniță, 80), Rodrigo Miguel Forte de Paes Martins (David Ionuț Paraschiv, 80) – Ola Israel Dele (Rareș Mihai Leescu, 66), Leonardo Jose dos Santos Teixeira (Tiberiu Ionuț Căpușă, 87). Head coach: Ricardo André de Pinho Sousa.

FK Csíkszereda: Pap Eduard Adrian – Ódor Máté, Szabó Alex, Hegedűs János Krisztián, Pászka Lóránd – Veres Szilárd (captain) – Stahl Albert Tivadar (Kukovec Nino, 66), Horváth Artúr (Vuković Dušan, 66), Nyitra Szabolcs Zsolt (Bota Darius Cristian, 80), Gabriel Araújo Lima (Czékus Ádám, 46) – Eppel Márton (Csürös Attila, 78). Head coach: Szabó István.

Goalscorers: Rodrigo Martins (47), Papp (69).

Yellow card: Szabó Alex (68).

Referee: Sorin Dan Vădana.

Assistant referees: Alexandru Vodă, Cristian Daniel Ilinca.

Fourth official: Claudiu Marcu.

VAR: Cristina Mariana Trandafir.

AVAR: Valentin Porumbel.

Match observer: Paul Alexandru Mincu.

Referee observer: Augustus Constantin.

Rédai Attila