The headline news here is simple enough: Florin Tănase is back in FCSB's starting XI for Monday's 21:30 meeting with Sepsi, while Ștefan Târnovanu is left out. And that is not a small detail. When a team is still trying to steady itself after a European elimination and a messy domestic draw, the lineup tells you plenty about where the manager thinks the pressure points are.
FCSB's season has already taken a hit in Europe, where the club went out to FK Auda 7-3 on aggregate in the second qualifying round of the Conference League. That leaves only SuperLiga and Cupa României, which means every league selection now matters a little more. There is less room for drift, less room for experiments, and definitely less room for pretending the side does not need time to settle.
The recent domestic form is decent enough on paper, but it is not exactly bulletproof. FCSB opened the SuperLiga campaign with two straight 2-0 wins, first against FC Argeș and then Csikszereda. Then came the 2-2 draw with Farul at Arcul de Triumf, a result that reminded everyone this is still a team in the process of being rebuilt rather than a finished product.
Tănase back, Târnovanu out
Tănase's return is the obvious selection story. He brings a level of quality and control that FCSB clearly feel they need for a match like this, especially with the team trying to find more rhythm after the Farul draw. At the same time, Târnovanu being left out is a notable call, particularly after he had been given time off for the Farul match and returned to training on Wednesday. That sequence suggests a deliberate management decision rather than anything casual.
There is also the wider Becali factor hanging over this. Gigi Becali has never been shy about saying what he thinks, and his comments about Tănase were blunt: that the player is talented but lacks "bărbăție", and that he gets upset and argues with referees by waving his arms instead of playing on. It is classic Becali language, but it also underlines the emotional edge around a player who can clearly still matter in the starting XI.
That is the real point here. FCSB are not just picking a team for one Monday night. They are trying to define who they are after an early European exit and in the middle of a domestic season that already feels as if it needs direction. Tănase in the XI is a statement. Târnovanu out is another. And for a side that has already conceded enough confusion this season, the next answer now has to come on the pitch.
