Article by Romeo Ene – Published Sunday, May 31, 2026, 1:00 p.m. / Updated Sunday, May 31, 2026, 1:00 p.m.
FCSB prevailed at the limit against rival Dinamoscore 2-1, in the play-off final for qualification in the Conference League preliminaries. The victory of the red-blues saved a nightmare season, in which they marked their first appearance in the play-outs. On the other hand, the management of Dinamo raged at the arbitration, accusing the tolerance shown by the “central” Marian Barbu in front of the veteran Valentin Crețu (37 years old).
Andrei Nicolescu, Dinamo's president, was stunned by the way FCSB's right back finished the match on the field.
Although he was involved in tense moments from the first sequences of the game, the defender of the hosts saw the first and only yellow card only in the 119th minute, to the frustration of the Dynamo official.
Andrei Nicolescu raged: “It's unreal how he managed to cheat and stay in the field!”
Nicolescu consider that Marian Barbu has long tolerated the game at the limit of the regulation practiced by the experienced footballer, who should have been warned already in the first 15 minutes of the match.
“They had some players, for example, it seems incredible to me how Crețu managed to get a yellow card only in the 118th minute. So he has altercations from minute 2, he has yellow fouls from minute 13, 15.
It's unreal how he managed to cheat and stay in the field. But that comes from experience. It was there on the edge the whole time. I was watching him, and when he got a yellow in the 118th minute, he stayed after that for another 15 seconds to beat the car.
He pushed everything to the limit where he knew how to do it,” Andrei Nicolescu told fanatik.ro.
Valentin Crețu // photo: Imago Images
Immediately after the end of the game, Gigi Becali announced that Valentin Crețu will receive a contract extension.
With five trophies in the red-blue shirt, two Romanian championship titles, two Supercups and a Cup, Crețu is about to sign a new commitment for another season.
The right back has played 39 games this season for FCSB, providing 8 assists. It is quoted by the specialized website Transfermarkt at 150,000 euros.
