BASEL, Switzerland (Interstat) — FC Basel opened its Europa League campaign with a commanding 3-1 victory over FCSB on Thursday at St. Jakob-Park, a result that defied a chaotic start and an early deficit after the visiting goalkeeper was sent off in the 12th minute.

The match, played before a crowd of [attendance figure not provided], was turned on its head when FCSB’s Ștefan Târnovanu was shown a straight red card, forcing the Romanian side to play with 10 men for the vast majority of the contest. Despite the numerical disadvantage, FCSB struck first before Basel’s relentless pressure eventually told.

The game’s first major incident occurred when Târnovanu was dismissed for a professional foul outside his penalty area, leaving FCSB to make an early, unplanned substitution. Goalkeeper Alexandru Pantea entered the match as a substitute, with starter Târnovanu taking an early walk to the locker room.

Playing a man down, FCSB weathered the initial storm and stunned the home crowd just before the hour mark. In the 57th minute, Darius Olaru found the net to give the short-handed visitors an improbable 1-0 lead. The goal was assisted by substitute Daniel Bîrligea.

Basel, however, continued to control possession and finally broke through in the 73rd minute. Veteran winger Xherdan Shaqiri leveled the score, converting a chance set up by defender Adrian Leon Barišić.

With FCSB’s defense tiring, Basel secured the winner with just two minutes remaining in regulation. Forward Ibrahim Salah scored the decisive goal, assisted by the substitute goalkeeper Pantea, who had entered the match under such unusual circumstances. Salah added an insurance goal in the 88th minute to seal the 3-1 victory.

The match was a physical affair, with five yellow cards issued by the officiating crew. Barišić of Basel was booked in the 8th minute, one of the earliest indications of a chippy contest. The first half concluded with a flurry of cautions, as Basel’s Léo Leroy and FCSB’s Pantea were both shown yellow in the 45th minute and stoppage time, respectively. The second half saw Olaru, the goalscorer, booked in the 66th minute, while Bîrligea received a yellow in the 63rd minute.

The result gives Basel a perfect start to its European season, moving its record in the competition to 1 win, 0 losses. For FCSB, the loss marks a disappointing beginning to their group stage, leaving them at 0 wins, 1 loss. The victory also improves Basel’s overall record across all competitions to 1-0, while FCSB falls to 0-1.

The final scoreline surpassed the pregame projection from Interstat’s game simulator, which had predicted a 1-1 draw. The outcome was more in line with the same service’s ELO rating system, which had given Basel a 78.20 percent probability of winning the match.