U Cluj – FCSB, match of the day in stage #16 of the Superliga. Probable teams + Best odds

U Cluj finished the regular season in 1st place, a first in its 105 years of existence, and now aims to secure qualification for the play-offs. To begin with. Ioan Ovidiu Sabău’s team is 9 points ahead of the defending champions, FCSB, tonight’s opponent, from 21:00, at the Cluj Arena.

Click HERE for details of the matches of stage #16

U Cluj – FCSB, live from 21:00

Starting teams at U Cluj – FCSB

In Cluj: Gertmonas – Ov. Popescu, Masoero, I. Cristea, Chipciu – Bota, Simion, Bic – Nistor – Miranyan, Thiam
reserves: Gorcea, Boboc, Oancea, Van der Werff, Mitrea, , Briz, D. Codrea, Răță, Oaida, Silaghi, Tchassem, Blănuță
Coach: Ioan Ovidiu Sabău

FCSB: Târnovanu – Crețu, Ngezana, M. Popescu, Radunovic – Șut, Chiricheș – Miculescu, Edjouma, Tavi Popescu – Bîrligea
reserves: Vlad, Ștefănescu, D. Popa, M. Toma, Baeten, Băluță Olaru, Musi
Coach: Elias Charalambous

Stadium Cluj Arena
Referee: Bîrsan Marcel (Bucharest – Bucharest)
A1: Ghinguleac Radu Adrian (Bucharest – Bucharest)
A2: Marica Mihai Marius (Bistrita – Bistrita Năsăud)
VAR referee: Barbu Marian (Făgăraş – Braşov)
Referee AVAR: Artene Ovidiu (Vaslui – Vaslui)

Superliga live standings

UPDATE at 20:25. The goalkeepers from FCSB came out to warm up

UPDATE at 20:20. Congestion at the access gates

There are still 40 minutes until the starting whistle of the game, and there is a very large crowd at the access gates. There will be a large attendance at the match, over 20,000 supporters will enter the Cluj Arena.

UPDATE at 19:45. Valentin Crețu gave autographs to some supporters

UPDATE at 19:40. The two teams went out on the field

Almost an hour and a half before the start of the match, the two teams came out to inspect the turf. Neluțu Sabău spoke with Daniel Popa, the striker from FCSB, bought from U Cluj.

Chipiu, Ovidiu Popescu, Iulian Cristea and Boboc discussed with those from FCSB.

UPDATE at 19:15. U Cluj came to the stadium

A few minutes after FCSB, U Cluj’s delegation also arrived at the stadium. With Ioan Ovidiu Sabău, the Transylvanians seemed relaxed before the match with the red-blues.

UPDATE at 19:20. FCSB arrived at Cluj Arena

UPDATE 11:00 » 24,000 spectators expected at Cluj Arena, a record for the University this season on home ground

Radu Constantea, the president of U Cluj, announced how many tickets were sold for the match with FCSB, a few hours before the duel at Cluj Arena. According to his estimates, there will be 23-24,000 spectators, a record for the hosts this season. The precedent dates from the match with Dinamo, from stage 8, when there were 18,066 spectators.

“23-24,000 spectators will be in the stadium. 26,000 max, if I’m optimistic, because we have a problem in an upper ring of the stadium. Vedem, it will also be pretty cold at game time, but I predict there will be 23 or 24,000 tickets sold by game time.

We also have our arguments, we are a united group, from the players to the technical staff, we have financial stability. We have goal premiums, access to the play-offs, but also for winning the championship. For the play-off, we have places 3-4, but also 1-2.

So far the people from FCSB have bought 100 tickets, but I estimate that there will be 500 or 600″, said Constantea, at Digi Sport Matinal.

Gigi Becali, before U Cluj – FCSB: “How can you beat me?”

Gigi Becali (66 years old), the boss of FCSB, prefaced his team’s duel against the leader of the Super League, Cluj University, and is convinced that the red-blues cannot lose on the field of Neluțu Sabău’s formation, calling him from new God in his speech.

“It’s football. We do not speak to be proud and brag. I don’t want to upset any player or downplay anything either. There (no at Cluj University) there are 3-4 players from me. Players I left behind. How can you beat me? It is possible if God wants, but it is more difficult.

They drew 1-1 with Farul. They didn’t look like a great team. Gică Hagi put many children in. We are playing against the team in first place. We must dethrone her.

Gotta see the sparks in his boots when he runs. 6 sparks must come out of each ice! Just sparks to come out”, said Gigi Becali, at Fanatik.

U Cluj was in the center of attention with the doping case of Berto, whose contract was terminated by the club. FCSB has just returned a victory on the European level, in the Europa League group, 2-0 against Midtjylland, a detail that places it well in the race for a place in the European spring.

U Cluj has two wins and two draws in the last 5 stages, plus the failure in Iasi, the only one in League 1 in the current edition. In contrast, Elias Charalambous’s side collected three wins and two draws in the last 5 rounds. He has two draws in a row, with Rapid and Universitatea Craiova.

April 13, 2024, Universitatea Cluj-Petrolul 1-2 was the last defeat suffered by the Transylvanians on their own ground in the championship. Five successes and three draws followed at home.

The red-blues suffered only one defeat in the current edition as visitors, 0-2 against FC Hermannstadt (August 25, 2024), in the rest two wins and three draws.

The players from Bucharest won five of the previous 10 direct duels in the championship, during which the players from Cluj recorded a victory, and the other four games ended in a draw.

• The last success achieved by the red-blues: April 25, 2015, Cluj University-FCSB 0-3.

• The last victory scored by Transylvania: October 31, 2022, Universitatea Cluj-FCSB 2-1.

• The most recent direct match in the championship: July 13, 2024, FCSB-University of Cluj 1-1, goals scored by Alexandru Musi and Dan Nistor respectively.

As a coach, Ioan Ovidiu Sabău met the red-blue team 18 times in the Super League, the record of the current coach of the Cluj students including four wins, five draws and nine lost games.

Average age: Cluj University – 27 years and four months; FCSB – 26 years and nine months.

• 27 players made at least one appearance for Cluj in the regular season, five of whom started every game as starters.

• The Bucharest players relied on 29 footballers, 11 of them managing to score at least one goal.