In an end on the edge, Rapid turned the score around with UTA! Moruțan impressed in his debut » ACUM ranking

Dobre, from the penalty, and Bolgado brought three points to Rapid on the field of UTA. The people from Bucharest came back in force after the people from Arad had opened the scoring through Coman and managed to capture three big points in the race for the title

The results of the 23rd stage of the Superliga

Chronicle by Justin Gafiuc, after UTA – Rapid 1-2: Rapid keeps the pace! Giulești turned the match in Arad and are close to the leader from Oltenia

Playing the last match of the stage is not always very comfortable, especially when you see that in the previous days the competition did not get in the way. Dinamo won in Sibiu, Craiova had fun with Botoșani, so for Rapid, the trip to Arad came with added pressure.

However, Gâlcă is not the type of coach to be destabilized in such a race. He also kept his balance in Arad, posted his team in classic positions, continued to give credit in attack to Paraschiv and ordered a settled game, without fireworks and without panic

Half under the sign of penalty controversies

However, Arad did not stay too long in the waiting net spread by the people of Giulești. They mainly forced on the flanks, they got a lot of free kicks, and Alomerovic was the first to check Aioani's goal, exactly from a fixed phase. The Macedonian placed a “brace” from the side, but Petrila took it right in front of the goal.

It was a wake-up call for Rapid, which was then overwhelmed by the dynamics of Mihalcea's offensive. Coman received a ball at the edge of the box, slightly to the right, pivoted and launched a tracer directly into the net, on the short corner, on a seemingly impossible trajectory, not even guessed by Aioani.

It was almost mid-morning (19) and the red light flashed instantly in the “cherry” camp. Arad's 1-0 goal acted as an injection of energy for Rapid, who began to flex their muscles in a fast-paced end to the half.

Manea put the ball in the net, but from offside, then Colțescu saw a dubious penalty for Rapid in a phase where the ball hit the withdrawn hands of luin Pospelov. The “central” was unstoppable and on VAR, Dobre scored from 11 meters for a fair tie at halftime.

But that's not before Rapidul asked for another penalty in a phase with the same Pospelov in the foreground: another ball hitting the elbow, an arm put behind his back, but Colțescu decided differently now, stirring up the agitation of the people of Bucharest.

Debut with the right for Moruțan

Gâlcă moved to the defensive first at halftime, forced by an injury to Kramer. Leo Bolgado came next to Pașcanu in the center of defense, going to become the hero of the evening for Rapid.

Moruțan also made his debut, replacing Petrila for the last half hour of the match. And the Greece-drafted international immediately made his presence felt with brave passes, clean crosses and unexpected initiatives in attack.

From his foot, at a corner, then the 2-1 phase for Rapid started: a ball placed in the center, repeated and blocked finishes, but Bolgado appeared as if from the ground to put the ball in the goal of Arad

It was happening in the 79th minute, and Rapidul then knew how to intelligently manage the end of a complicated game. He also held onto the ball for extended possession, didn't hide in his own half and looked to keep the opposition as far away from the sticks as possible.

Mission accomplished, finally, so three points go the way of Giulești, and the race at the top of League 1 keeps the Craiova – Rapid – Dinamo triple shoulder to shoulder in a regular season finale that promises to be full of tension.

Superliga standings

FINAL. UTA – Rapid 1-2

• Click HERE for statistics
• They scored: M. Coman (19) / A. Dobre (43), Bolgado (79)
• 9,312 spectators watched the match at the stadium, official number. It is the biggest assist since this early 2026.
• Elimination: Pospelov (90+5)

Min. 90+5: End of match. Rapid prevails with 2-1.

Min. 90+4: Pospelov sees his second yellow after elbowing Vulturar in the head.

Min. 85: Big opportunity for Rapid! After a nice action, the ball reaches Moruțan on the right, he nicely avoids Alomerovic, then shoots at the goalkeeper.

Min. 79: Quick Goal! Mark Bolgado! Moruțan crosses very well from the corner, followed by a carom in the box. The ball passed to Dobre and Pașcanu before the Brazilian scored.

Min. 79: Koljic sends it to Dobre who is waiting on the edge of the box. Shoot and get a corner.

Min. 76: Moruțan throws the ball into the box, Koljic sends it to Paraschiv with his chest, but he doesn't get to go back to the goal.

Min. 69: Alin Roman advances a few meters with the ball at his feet and shoots. The ball goes way over.

Min. 65: Incredible opportunity! Moruțan, in his first action in the new team's shirt, gives an excellent pass for Borza. He sends in front of the goal, from where Dobre and Hromada fail to put the ball in the net.

Min. 62: Petrila exits, Moruțan enters, at the debut.

Min. 53: The ball goes to Paraschiv, who was in a great position, but the execution is very poor. The goal would have been disallowed for offside.

Min. 51: Bolgado passed to Aioani, he slipped, the ball reached Mino Sota, who shot at the goalkeeper. Corner for the hosts.

Min. 46: The second half has started. Kramer, injured at the end of the first half, was replaced by Bolgado.

Min. 45: Rapidists ask for a new penalty, after the ball also hits Pospielov in the elbow, after a shot sent by Dobre. Colțescu does not give a penalty and is not called by those in the VAR room.

Min. 43: Alex Dobre executes for sure and brings the score to 1-1.

Min. 40: Christensen shoots from inside the box, the ball hits Pospielov in the arm, and Colțescu gives the penalty. Iulian Dima and Vasile Marinescu considered that the stopper had his hand glued to his body and called him to the “central” on the monitor. He maintained his decision.

Min. 32: Borza crosses into the small box for Manea, he puts the ball in the goal, but the goal is not validated. The defender was offside.

Min. 29: Pașcanu fouls Coman, sees the yellow card that causes him to be suspended with U Cluj, the next stage.

Min. 19: Goal UTA! Marius Coman scores a superb goal! Țuțu's missed shot reaches the attacker in the box, he turns and shoots into the net.

Min. 17: Pașcanu shoots hard from a long distance, the ball goes over the goal.

Min. 12: Dobre tries for the goal from inside the box, but the shot is blocked.

Min. 9: Alomerovic hits an excellent free kick from a lateral position, the ball goes past Aioani, but it is blocked from the goal line by Manea.

Min. 7: The two teams fumble, without endangering the opposing goal.

The match has begun!

UTA – Quick, the starting teams:

UTA (4-2-3-1): Gorcea – M. Tuțu, Poulolo, Pospielov, Alomerovic – Mino Sota, Odada – Costache, A. Roman, Abdallah – M. Coman
reserves: Tordai, F. Iacob, Benga, Stolnik, Ov. Popescu, Van Durmen, Hrezdac, D. Barbu, L. Mihai
Coach: Adrian Mihalcea

Quick (4-3-3): Aioani – Cr. Manea, Pașcanu, Kramer, Borza – Grameni, Hromada, Christensen – Dobre, D. Paraschiv, Petrila
Reserves: D. Iliev, Ciobotariu, Bolgado, Onea, Salceanu, K. Keita, Vulturar, G. Gheorghe, Hazrollaj, Jambor, Koljic, Moruțan
Absent: Burmaz, D. Mendes
Coach: Costel Gâlcă

Olimpiu Moruțan, the most spectacular transfer of the winter in the Superliga, is premiering in the Giulești team. The duel started in Arad on the reserve bench. Daniel Paraschiv, in his second match at Rapid, is the starter in the Giulești attack.

Stadium: Francis Neuman (Arad)
Referee: Sebastian Coltescu / Assistants: Cristian Ilinca, Alexandru Voda
VAR Referee: Julian Dima / AVAR Referee: Vasile Marinescu