SFÂNTU GHEORGHE, Romania (Interstat) — FC Bihor scored twice, including Alex Orban’s 74th-minute winner, and beat Csikszereda M. Ciuc 2-1 on Tuesday at Stadionul Municipal. The visitors took an early lead, absorbed a Csikszereda M. Ciuc response before halftime and then found the decisive goal after being reduced to 10 men. The result gave FC Bihor a second straight competitive victory and kept its overall unbeaten start intact. It also handed Csikszereda M. Ciuc a narrow home defeat in a match that remained tight through the closing stages.

Dragos Sebastian Tescan put FC Bihor ahead in the 23rd minute, finishing the opening spell of pressure from the visitors. Csikszereda M. Ciuc answered through Alex Szabo in the 30th minute, leveling the match and giving the home side renewed energy before the break. The teams went into halftime level at 1-1. Szabo’s goal was Csikszereda’s only tally, while Tescan’s opener helped Bihor dictate the early tempo and forced the home side to chase an equalizer.

The match changed in the 67th minute when FC Bihor’s Haita F. was sent off with a red card. Despite playing a man down, Bihor regained the lead in the 74th minute through Orban, whose late finish proved to be the difference. Orban’s goal came shortly after entering the match and capped a resilient road performance for the visitors, who defended their advantage through the closing minutes and answered Csikszereda’s pressure with compact positioning. Bihor’s back line held firm as the home side pushed numbers forward in search of a late equalizer.

Discipline shaped the closing stages. FC Bihor received yellow cards in the 43rd and 59th minutes, while Csikszereda M. Ciuc was booked in the 79th and 90th minutes. Csikszereda pushed for a second equalizer after Orban’s goal but could not break through against a Bihor defense that held firm through the final whistle. The late bookings reflected the rising tension as the home side searched for a way back into the match.

The win moved FC Bihor to one win and no losses in this competition and four wins and no losses across all competitions. Csikszereda M. Ciuc fell to no wins and one loss in the competition and stands at three wins, two losses and one draw overall. FC Bihor had entered the match after beating visiting CSM Resita 2-0, winning 2-0 at CSC Dumbravita and beating visiting FC Bacau 1-0. Csikszereda M. Ciuc’s recent run included a 2-1 home win over FC Voluntari, a 1-1 draw at Otelul, a 1-0 home loss to Univ. Craiova, a 2-0 win at Gloria B-N and a 2-1 win at Steaua. Those results gave both sides contrasting form before the match, with Bihor carrying an unbeaten record and Csikszereda looking to respond after a mixed stretch.

Csikszereda M. Ciuc is next scheduled to host Oradea in the Cupa României, with another competition match at FCSB later in the schedule. FC Bihor will look to build on its unbeaten start in the competition after securing the away result. Both sides will return to league play with contrasting momentum after a match that turned on Bihor’s ability to score while short-handed. The visitors’ discipline after the red card and their ability to protect the lead proved central to the final outcome. The result leaves FC Bihor with momentum ahead of its next fixture.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a 2-2 final score. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Csikszereda M. Ciuc with a 68.1 percent probability to win, and Csikszereda had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -0.75. The total score of 3 went under the over/under line of 2.5.