Article by Eduard Apostol, Cezar Titor – Published Monday, January 12, 2026, 1:16 p.m. / Updated Monday, January 12, 2026 1:17 p.m.
Today, towards the end of the training camp in Antalya, Daniel Bîrligea, the FCSB striker, held a press conference at the hotel where the red-blues are staying during the training camp in Turkey.
The red-blue striker admits that the team feels the accumulated fatigue, but is counting on more freshness in the decisive matches of the next period. It does not take into account the miss of the play-off and explains the hesitant start by a premature relaxation of the champion, in a championship that has become more balanced and full of surprises.
He remains convinced that his squad is “the strongest in the Superliga” and capable of fighting for the title until the end. In Europe, he still sees chances and sees the duel with Dinamo Zagreb as a landmark. For him, the main objectives are qualifying for the World Cup and winning the championship, the first being a priority due to the fact that the time of the match with Turkey is closer. He talks about the March dam with a lot of confidence: “if there's a 1% chance, I believe it.”
Daniel Bîrligea: “We are not missing the play-off 100%”
“We are quite tired, we worked very hard. Tough and important matches are coming up and we want to be as prepared as possible. Here we try to load as much as we can, and in the next matches I hope to be as fresh as possible. It will be difficult until we get used to the weather in the country, but this is the tradition and we have to adapt quickly.
There are not many games left, so we have to focus and collect points, because we need them. We don't think at all that we could miss the play-offs. We don't miss him 100%, we don't talk about anything else“, Bîrligea said at the beginning of the press conference.
Then, he talks about the champion's weak start to the season, which he considers “fake”, confessing at the same time that he was not impressed by any other team in the Super League, his opinion being categorical: FCSB remains the strongest in the championship, with real chances for the title, even if the Bucharesters “wintered” in the play-out place.
“The start of the season was, shall we say, false. I thought that we would enter too easily, that they would all give up in front of the champion, but it was the opposite: they wanted to show that they have Valais players who can face the champion. We hit the top and that was our mistake. Nobody surprised me.
If there was any team to surprise, they were now 15 points ahead. There are many teams at the top, they are evenly matched and surprises can happen. Even the teams in first place are not sure of the play-offs. We can fight for the title. We have team, players and faith. Until it's all mathematical, we can't say otherwise. We are the strongest team in the Superliga, by far“, said Daniel Bîrligea.
In Europe we still have a chance. We have to focus on the match in Zagreb and then we'll see what happens.
Qualification for the World Cup comes first, then the title. We have to go to Turkey with a fighting attitude, fight to the end and believe in our chances.
If there's a 1% chance we'll qualify, I believe in it. It's a pressure to play in such stadiums, but it's also nice when you play against other teams with supporters. I like him to curse me, to scream. When this happens, it means they are afraid of you. If you're softer, it doesn't help. It depends on what character you have. If you know how to behave in these phases of matches, in such stadiums, it can be nice, but it depends on the character of each player.
– Daniel Bîrligea, FCSB forward
