Cătălin Itu, a 26-year-old midfielder with four Romanian championship titles under his belt from his time at CFR Cluj, made a remarkable debut for CSKA Sofia in Bulgaria. The club signed him this summer from Lokomotiv Plovdiv for €300,000.
During the match against Botev Vratsa on the fifth round of the Bulgarian league, Itu provided two crucial assists but was also sent off, with all pivotal events occurring in the first half.
The hosts opened the scoring in the 12th minute with Joel Zwarts finding the net after Itu’s assist.
In the 38th minute, Itu registered his second assist of the evening, setting up Petko Panayotov to make it 2-0.
However, his debut took a turn for the worse when he received a straight red card in stoppage time of the first half, around the 45+5 minute mark, for a dangerous tackle on an opponent.
The referee, Popov, reviewed the play on VAR before issuing the red card to the Romanian midfielder.
Despite being down a player, CSKA Sofia maintained control of the game and scored three additional goals in the second half.
Teodor Ivanov found the net in the 65th minute, followed by Zwarts again in the 72nd minute, and Godoy in the 79th minute, concluding a dominant victory for the team coached by Hristo Yanev.
With this win, CSKA Sofia now sits in second place in the Bulgarian league with 13 points after five matches, trailing two points behind the leaders, Ludogorets. Levski Sofia, a former opponent of Universitatea Craiova in the Champions League, is fourth with 12 points.
Itu will also get a chance to participate in European competitions this fall. After eliminating Maccabi Tel Aviv with an aggregate score of 4-3, CSKA Sofia qualified for the Europa League playoffs, where they will face OFI Crete.
Regardless of the outcome in this two-legged tie, the Bulgarian side has secured its spot in the main phase of a European competition.
According to Transfermarkt, Cătălin Itu’s market value stands at €750,000.
