Nothing new in Eastern football

Local football has given us new proof that it is very far from the professionalism long proclaimed on all corners of the field. A confrontation on the axis Rapid - U Craiova - Liga Profesionistă de Fotbal - FCSB reminded us of where we left off in the "90s and made it clear to us that few steps forward have been made.

It all started with a move by the LPF that, apparently, benefited the team sponsored by Gigi Becali. A fetid smell emanated from the statements and, especially, the official press releases, which contained sulfurous phrases such as "predatory”, "kissed the ring at the Palace”, "I don't give a damn...”.

Beyond that, after all the verbal aggression, the LPF General Assembly, held less than 24 hours after the conflict broke out, sanctioned the "handkerchief on the drum", to keep us on the official note, after an increase in the sale of TV rights for League 1 matches was triumphantly announced.

If this is how the officials think and act, then we can have no claim on those who provide the basis for the phenomenon.

Everything seems to come down to who has the microphone closer and who shouts louder. It has already become routine to see club presidents turning into media stars, giving lessons in morality and fairness, while behind the scenes they juggle interests and arrangements. The examples are so numerous that they no longer shock anyone. We have been watching the same poorly directed play for decades. We have the same main actors - only some have whiter hair, others more expensive suits. Otherwise, the scenario has not changed: the scandal precedes the match, and after the final whistle, everyone kisses in the box and promises that "next time" they will do it differently.

Meanwhile, international performance is at a level where our teams disappear from European cups before the leaves fall from the trees.

There is nothing new in Eastern football. Only recycled promises, the same neighborhood quarrels elevated to the rank of sports strategy and the same lack of vision. If in 1995 we excused ourselves that we are "barely learning the rules of football capitalism", in 2025 we have no excuse.