Trica fires Steaua to glory

Two goals from Eugen Trica helped FC Steaua Bucuresti beat city rivals FC Dinamo Bucuresti 2-1 in the final of the Romanian Super Cup on Saturday.

Disallowed goals
Steaua's fourth victory in five Super Cup finals, in front of a crowd of 50,000 in the National stadium, came as a result of fine finishing from Trica and two disallowed Dinamo goals. Claudiu Niculescu's superb 22nd-minute header, from a Ovidiu Talvan cross, was ruled out for offside and Dinamo's misery was heightened when Trica broke the deadlock on the half-hour.

Powerful header
Adrian Neaga's driven cross found Trica in space and the Romanian international powered a header into the top right corner of the Dinamo net. Steaua could have doubled their advantage in the 40th minute but Claudiu Raducanu hit the post after breaking clear for a one-on-one with Dinamo goalkeeper Bogdan Lobont.

Niculescu on target
Dinamo dominated possession for long periods during the second period and eventually equalised when Niculescu fired past Steaua keeper Tiberiu Lung after being released by a superb through ball from midfield. Four minutes later, Dinamo had the ball in the net once more but Claudiu Dragan's effort was again ruled out for offside.

Winning goal
With both sides pressing in search of a winning goal, Trica embarked on a fine solo run that saw him beat two Dinamo defenders before slotting his shot past Lobont for his second of the match. Dinamo had the chance to equalise in stoppage time but Steaua defender Mirel Rabi was on hand to clear off his own goalline.

'Dominated the game'
Steaua coach Victor Piturca was delighted with the victory and claimed his side fully deserved their victory. "Beyond any doubt, this victory came because we dominated the game," Piturca said. "We also created many more scoring chances than our opponents."

'Trica was the difference'
His opposite number Ion Marin praised Trica's double strike but questioned the two disallowed goals. "Trica, the scorer of both Steaua goals, was the difference between two good teams today. But maybe the referee's decisions didn't help either. The second half of the championship will be hard for both Dinamo and the other top teams."

'More ambition'
Goal-hero Trica believed that the derby atmosphere had helped his side to victory. "We had more ambition to win because of two things," he said. "Firstly, because it was a game against Dinamo and because some Dinamo players made arrogant statements before the game. Secondly, the result was important for our fans. Before the game, some of them were crying and were begging us to beat Dinamo."

Niculescu disappointed
Dinamo striker Niculescu was disappointed with the outcome and his disallowed goal. "What can you say after such a game? Everybody saw that we were the better team and I don't know what we had to do to beat them. If it had been 1-0 to us, the game would have been played differently."