University of Craiova – Steel is playing NOW, in stage #25 of the Superleague. The match started at 18:00, at the “Ion Oblemenco” stadium, it is liveTEXT on GSP.ro and live on TV on Prima Sport 1 and Digi Sport 1. With a success, the Oltenians return to first place in the ranking.
LIVE » Craiova University – Oțelul 0-0
Halftime in Craiova, 0-0 after the first 45 minutes in Banie
The 45th minute: Bancu puts the ball perfectly “on the forehead” of Monday Etim, and he rises and sends it to the crossbar, at a stage when Dur-Bozoancă was as if defeated
The 44th minute: Bancu sprints very well, but the phase ends quickly for Olteni, after the recovery of Galateni
Minute 42: From a free kick, Cicâldău sends to the far corner, and the referee dictates a foul in the attack after Romanchuck's intervention, the Oltenians wasting the fixed phase that came three minutes before the break
Minute 37: From the fixed phase, Ciobanu sends a dangerous shot to the goal guarded by Laurentiu Popescu, and Nsimba deviates by a millimeter outside the field, following a corner for the Galatians
The 36th minute: Mora doesn't handle the duel with Conrado well, on the “lip” of the box, and the Steel receives a free kick from a dangerous position
28th minute: Nsimba falls in the box after a light contact with Zhelev and the Oltenians ask for a penalty, but Florin Andrei lets the game continue
The 27th minute: After a modest start to the match, the Oltenians became more dangerous in the middle of the first half. Mora finds David Matei very well, who attempts a shot at the long corner, but Oțelul survives after Zivulic saves Dur-Bozoancă
Minute 20: Defender Adrian Rus tests Dur-Bozoancă, but he boxes very well and clears the danger
Minute 17: Balanced start in Craiova. Neither team is taking any chances in these first minutes of the match. The hosts are still far from Dur-Bozoancă's goal, despite Bancu's opportunity failing to get close to the opponent's box
Minute 8: Ciobanu sends a “missile” at Craiova's goal, but the scoreboard does not change
Minute 6: Dur-Bozoancă's first chance on goal in this match. Nicușor Bancu shoots from the box, but sends over from a very good position
Start of the game in Banie! The match was preceded by a festive moment, in which the captain Nicușor Bancu received the shirt with the number 420, the number of games he has in all competitions in blue and white, the third in the all-time history of Craiova
Craiova University – Oțelul, starting teams
University of Craiova (3-5-2): L. Popescu – Romanchuk, Ad. Rus, Screciu – Mora, D. Matei, T. Băluță, Cicâldău, Bancu – Nsimba, Monday Etim
reserves: Long – Mekvabishvili, Stevanovic, F. Stefan, Badelj, Mogoș, Teles, A. Crețu, Muntean, Basceanu, Houri, Baiaram
Coach: Filipe Coelho
Steel (4-3-3): Dur-Bozoancă – Zhelev, Zivulic, P. Iacob, Conrado – Pedro, Lameira, A. Ciobanu – Bordun, Lopes, Patrick
reserves: I. Popescu, Ursu, Neicu, Cunha Lopes, Wagatsuma, P. de Almeida, Sandu, Chira, Neicu, Debeljuh
Coach: Laszlo Balint
Stadium “Ion Oblemenco” – Craiova
Referee Florin Andrei (Târgu Mureș). ASSISTANT Imre Bucsi (St. George), Andrei Constantinescu (Bucharest)
VAR referee Ovidiu Hațegan (Arad). Assistant VAR Lucian Rusandu (Saint George)
The current Superliga standings
UPDATE 17:45 » Suspended, Isenko is in the stands
Suspended at Ovidiu, where he saw the straight red card, Ukrainian goalkeeper Pavlo Isenko is in the stands for this match. Between the substitutions, his place was taken by Laurentiu Popescu, who was replaced by Filipe Coelho
UPDATE at 17:40 » The legends of Craiova came to the match
At tonight's duel, from the stands, the Oltenians will be encouraged by the legends from Bănie, former players Nicolae Negrilă, Costică Donose, Emil Săndoi, Gabriel Boldici and Silvian Cristescu, who will be present at the match that can bring Craiova back to first place in the Superliga.
UPDATE at 17:20 » Mihnea Rădulescu, together with his colleagues
Still recovering from the serious injury suffered last year, Mihnea Rădulescu will be with his colleagues at the duel that will start at 18:00. Also, Fălcuşan and Assad Al Hamlawi will also support the Oltenians from the stands in the game against Oțelul.
After the draw with FC Botoșani, the Galatasarays left the play-off zone, but remain there, in the group of teams that make claims to the top 6. Balint returns as an opponent in Bănie. He was the coach of the blue-and-whites for a short time, 7 matches to be exact, between June and August 2022, and the average points won was not an impressive one – 1.29.
PHOTO GALLERY. Images from the stadium, one hour before the game
The most interesting information before Craiova – Oțelul
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November 9, 2025, Universitatea Craiova-UTA 1-2 was the only defeat suffered by Olteni in the last 14 matches played in the championship as hosts, otherwise nine wins and four draws.
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Craiova have the best attack in the championship, 44 goals scored, of which 26 on home soil.
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59.8% is the average possession of the University of Craiova in the current season, the 1st place in this chapter as well.
Since the return of the Galatians on the first stage in 2023, the University and Oțelul have met five times in the main domestic competition, twice the Oltanians prevailed, one game was won by the Moldovans, and two other games ended in a draw.
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The most recent direct Superliga match took place on September 20, 2025, Oțelul – Universitatea Craiova 1-0, goal scored by João Lameira.
It should be remembered that Laszlo Balint coached the Craiova group at the start of the 2022/2023 season. As an opponent, he has faced her seven times in all competitions, his record comprising two wins, one draw and four defeats.
