Universitatea Craiova vs Ararat-Armenia: What You Need to Know About the Opponent and What to Expect from the Match

Today, August 20, Ararat-Armenia will play one of the most important matches of their current European campaign. In the first leg of the Europa League play-off round, the Armenian club will face Romanian champions Universitatea Craiova away from home.

The match will take place at the Ion Oblemenco Stadium in Craiova and will kick off at 21:00 Yerevan time.

Just two matches separate the teams from the Europa League league phase. Here is a closer look at Universitatea, how the Romanian club reached this stage and which players pose the greatest threat.

Romanian champions with a complicated history

Last season, Universitatea Craiova became Romanian champions, ending Craiova’s 35-year wait for a league title.

At the same time, the club’s history is somewhat more complicated than it might initially appear.

The current football entity was re-established in 2013 and considers itself the continuation of the historic Universitatea, which was one of Romania’s leading clubs in the 20th century and won the national championship four times. The rights to the history and heritage of the old team have for many years been the subject of disputes between the current Universitatea and FC U Craiova 1948.

But if the historical and legal disputes are put aside, the current Universitatea are the reigning Romanian champions and one of the strongest teams in the country.

Last season was particularly successful for the club: in addition to winning the league, the team also lifted the Romanian Cup.

Universitatea’s European campaign

The Romanian champions began their European season in Champions League qualifying.

In the first round, Universitatea had few problems against Belarusian side ML Vitebsk, winning 4-1 away and 1-0 at home.

Their next opponent was Bulgaria’s Levski. The Romanians lost 1-0 in Sofia before drawing 2-2 in the return leg and being eliminated from the Champions League.

The team then continued its European campaign in the Europa League. In the third qualifying round, Universitatea eliminated Finnish side KuPS — 1-1 in Finland and 2-1 in Craiova.

Now Ararat-Armenia are the final obstacle standing between the Romanian club and the Europa League league phase.

Ararat-Armenia’s European journey

Like Universitatea, the Armenian side began the season in the Champions League and managed to negotiate two qualifying rounds.

Their first opponents were Riga. Ararat-Armenia won 2-0 in Yerevan before losing 3-2 away, preserving their aggregate advantage.

They then eliminated Ireland’s Shamrock Rovers, winning 2-0 at home and losing 2-1 away.

Slovenia’s Celje were the team that eventually stopped the Armenian champions. Ararat-Armenia won the first leg 2-1 but lost the return match 2-0.

As a result, both teams have reached the Europa League play-offs after being eliminated from Champions League qualifying, although Universitatea have already played an additional Europa League tie against KuPS.

Universitatea have kept their title-winning core

One of the Romanian side’s main strengths is the stability of their squad.

After their title-winning season, Universitatea kept almost all of their key players while also making several quality additions. Goalkeeper Răzvan Sava, striker Simon Elisor and wide player Heriberto Tavares were among those who joined the team.

However, the main threat still comes from the core of last season’s squad.

Universitatea most often use a system with three central defenders, which can be described as either a 3-4-3 or 5-2-3, depending on the phase of play.

They are a physically powerful team, but they do not simply surrender possession and rely exclusively on counter-attacks. The Romanians like to control the ball, involve their central midfielders and create overloads out wide through the high positioning of their wing-backs.

Cicâldău — a name Armenia know well

One of the central figures in the current Universitatea team remains Alexandru Cicâldău.

Armenian supporters should know the name very well.

On March 31, 2021, Cicâldău scored twice against Armenia in a World Cup qualifier. His goals turned a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead for Romania.

But that evening in Yerevan ultimately became a historic one for the Armenian national team.

Eduard Spertsyan first scored his debut goal for Armenia, before Varazdat Haroyan and Tigran Barseghyan turned the match around late on — 3-2 to Armenia.

Cicâldău scored both of Romania’s goals that night, with one of the assists coming from another current Universitatea player, Nicușor Bancu.

Bancu remains dangerous out wide

Nicușor Bancu is now 33 years old, and he no longer has the pace he possessed several years ago.

Nevertheless, the Romanian captain cannot be underestimated.

Bancu still gets forward very actively and has an excellent delivery with his left foot. In a system with three central defenders, the wing-backs are given considerable freedom, meaning the Armenian side will need to keep a close eye on his forward runs.

In that same Armenia-Romania match in 2021, it was Bancu who crossed for Cicâldău to head home and make it 2-1.

Another familiar face — Mekvabishvili

Universitatea also have 25-year-old Georgia midfielder Anzor Mekvabishvili in their squad.

The Armenian national team faced him only recently, in the Nations League matches in March 2025.

Georgia defeated Armenia 3-0 in Yerevan and then 6-1 in Tbilisi. Mekvabishvili featured in both matches and started the second.

At Universitatea, the Georgian is responsible for controlling the centre of the pitch alongside Cicâldău.

This partnership largely defines the Romanian club’s style. Both players are comfortable in possession and capable of progressing the ball forward, meaning Universitatea do not look like a typical side built exclusively around physical battles.

The biggest threat — Ștefan Baiaram

However, the most dangerous player in the Romanian champions’ squad right now is arguably 23-year-old Ștefan Baiaram.

The quick and technically gifted winger is capable both of finishing attacks himself and creating opportunities for his teammates.

His name has also appeared with increasing frequency in European transfer news. Anderlecht showed serious interest in Baiaram this summer, but the clubs were unable to agree on a transfer fee. He was later linked with a possible move to Italy, including Bologna.

His desire to test himself in a stronger league has not stopped Baiaram from remaining one of his team’s leading players.

He is particularly dangerous when given space: he can accelerate sharply, cut inside from the wing and finish the move himself. Leaving him one-on-one with a defender across a large area would be extremely risky for Ararat-Armenia.

What to expect from the match

Universitatea look like the favourites for the first leg, at least because of home advantage, their squad depth and the individual quality of their players.

But this is not an opponent against whom Ararat-Armenia will necessarily have to spend all 90 minutes camped around their own penalty area.

The Romanians have vulnerabilities.

A system featuring high-positioned wing-backs gives Universitatea plenty of attacking options, but it also leaves space on the flanks after possession is lost. If Ararat-Armenia can play through the pressure effectively, those areas could become one of the Armenian club’s main weapons.

The key question is whether Ararat-Armenia can cope with the hosts’ physical intensity and prevent Cicâldău and Mekvabishvili from comfortably controlling the centre of the pitch.

Another task will be to stop Baiaram from building up speed and prevent Bancu from regularly delivering crosses from favourable positions.

At the same time, Ararat-Armenia’s European run this season has already shown that they are capable of getting results in two-legged ties. The team eliminated Riga and Shamrock Rovers, while also winning the first leg against Celje.

The objective in Craiova therefore appears quite clear: remain structurally disciplined without the ball, survive the hosts’ early pressure and exploit the space that appears behind the Romanian wing-backs.

Universitatea Craiova — Ararat-Armenia

Craiova, Ion Oblemenco Stadium (30,000 spectators)
August 20
21:00 Yerevan time
Europa League, play-off round, first leg