Wave of departures at the Superliga club » The new coach decides everything “from the shadows”
Article by George Nistor – Published Thursday, May 21, 2026, 5:11 p.m. / Updated Thursday, May 21, 2026, 5:14 p.m.
Csikszereda is preparing for a major rebuild at the end of his first season in the Superliga. The club that was promoted last summer will let go of several players who did not perform, even if the season ended with a ticked goal. Ciucani will also change the coach at the same time. Hungarian Istvan Szabo (59 years old) is expected in Harghita until the end of the month to sign the contract.
The staff moves come shortly after Robert Ilyeș decided to put an end to the Miercurea Ciuc adventure, being dissatisfied with recent decisions. “It was clear to me that the way I saw football was not compatible with that of the club. I wanted more, I know I can do more. But I needed valuable players, to make a team the way I wanted, to be able to bring players with qualities that would mold to my vision,” said the former technician of Csikszereda for GSP.
Csikszereda is parting ways with at least five players
According to the information of Gazeta Sporturilor, Szabo wants to transfer several Hungarian players from the second league of Hungary, thus giving up part of the current squad.
Wilhelm Loeper, Arian Kabashi, Bloj Erwin, Mariano Bettini and Gustavo Cabral will end their engagements with Csikszereda on June 30. At the same time, the club is trying to extend the deals of Laszlo Kleinheisler and Bence Vegh, key players in the second part of the 2025-2026 edition.
Also questionable are Zoard Nagy and Szabolcs Dusinszki, for whom the Hammers are in talks with Akademia Puskas to extend their loans for another season.
Csikszereda celebrated staying in the Superliga after 2-0 with FC Botoșani
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Who is Istvan Szabo? The 59-year-old technician is one of the Hungarian coaches appreciated for his ability to build competitive teams with small budgets. He earned his reputation at Kecskemet, a club he took over from the second division and immediately promoted to the Hungarian first division.
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In the first season after promotion, Szabo produced one of the surprises of the championship and finished in 2nd place, just six points behind Ferencvaros. Szabo's last experience was at Nyiregyhaza, which he left in October 2025, after a run of 5 wins and 6 draws in 19 games.
Cantonment at the brother club
Csikszereda will hold two training camps this summer, and one of them will take place in Dunajska Streda, in Slovakia, a city with a Hungarian majority and the home of DAC, a club funded by the Hungarian Government.
The relations between the two entities have been very good for several years, and the Čiucans have frequently called on the infrastructure and connections developed by the Slovak group.
During the training camp, Csikszereda will play friendly matches with DAC Dunajska Streda, Backa Topola and Gyor.
The other training camp of the summer will take place in Austria, where Csikszereda will continue his centralized training ahead of his second consecutive season on the first stage. The team from Miercurea Ciuc finished the previous championship in 11th place in the general ranking of the Superliga, respectively in fifth position in the play-out.
