Courtesy: FIFA.com


Portugal first through to the quarters

Portugal have become the first team to book their place in the quarter-finals of Thailand 2012 after beating Paraguay 4-1 at Bangkok’s Huamark Indoor Stadium. Goals from Cardinal, Joao Matos and the outstanding Ricardinho were enough to secure a thoroughly deserved win for Jorge Braz’s side, and take them through to face the winner of Italy’s match against Egypt.

The Poruguese completely bossed the first half, dominating possession and racking up 20 efforts on goal to Paraguay’s six. Only a magnificent goal-line clearance from Juan Salas denied them an 11th-minute opener, with the Albirroja No9 diving across goal to head away Cardinal’s goal-bound effort. The Portugal forward would not be denied though, and within a minute he had scored his seventh goal of the tournament.

Yet although his was the finishing touch, it was a goal which owed much to some great play by Arnaldo on the left, who jinked his man and delivered a pinpoint pass to leave the prolific No7 with a simple tap-in at the back post. Portugal were good value for their lead, and with 26 seconds of the first half remaining, they doubled it. This time, the goal came from a short free-kick rolled by Ricardinho to Joao Matos, whose powerful right-foot shot took a telling deflection on its way past Carlos Espinola.

Paraguay were on the ropes at this stage, and Cardinal should have provided a knockout blow shortly after the re-start, but side-footed wide from close range with Espinola stranded and only a covering defender to beat on the line. Portugal continued to dominate though, forcing their opponents to throw on a fifth outfielder, Gabriel Ayala, in place of Espinola.

It was a tactic that eventually paid off with five minutes to go, when Juan Salas’s close-range shot hit the inside of the left-hand post and trickling over the line after squirming away from Andre Sousa’s grasp. That sparked a tense and dramatic finish, but Ricardinho removed all doubt with two late breakaway goals, capping a superb performance by the Portugal No10.

The quotes
"I'm very satisfied to be one of the best eight teams at this World Cup. We were very organised, and when that happens things are easier. But we should have scored more goals. in any case, it was a well deserved win,"
Jorge Braz, Portugal coach.

"Our defence was good today, but we didn't manage to do enough going forward. Most of the time we had our opponents under control but Portugal has very good individual performances, particularly that of Ricardinho,"
Fernando Leite, Paraguay coach.



Courtesy: FIFA.com


First-half blitz sees Ukraine through

Ukraine survived a stirring comeback from Japan to advance to the last eight with a 6-3 win at the Huamark Indoor Stadium in Bangkok. Despite a second-half rally from the Samurai Blue, this game was effectively over at half-time, by which stage the eastern Europeans had built up a six-goal lead and secured a meeting with either Iran or Colombia.

The Group A winners were in ruthless mood and took the lead after just three minutes when Sergiy Cheporniuk dragged the ball away from his marker with the sole of his foot and toe-poked into the top corner from just outside the box. Two minutes later, another excellent goal doubled Ukraine’s lead, with Dmytro Fedorchenko escaping the attentions of Kaoru Morioka wide on the right before drilling a low shot just inside the far post.

A nightmare start for Japan took another nasty twist on ten minutes when Shota Hoshi was robbed in attempting to dribble out of defence, leaving Sergiy Zhubra with a simple tap-in. Ievgen Rogachov then claimed another eye-catching goal for the eastern Europeans, smashing a left-foot shot home after cutting inside his marker.

The picture for Japan became even gloomier when top scorer Kotara Inaba was sent off five minutes before the break for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity, and Ukraine quickly made their numerical advantage count, Denys Ovsiannikov extending their lead to five. Just 38 more seconds had elapsed by the time Ovsiannikov lobbed in his second, and yet while it seemed that a cricket score was beckoning at this stage, Japan somehow contrived to inject drama into proceedings.

Kaoura Morioka was the man who revived his team’s hopes with two goals in the space of a minute, the first an opportunist effort and the second a spectacular piledriver of a shot, sent high into the net from near the right touchline. By the time Waturu Kitihara swept in a third, set up by a fifth outfield player coach Miguel Rodrigo had sent forward, the Japan fans were beginning to believe again. But Ukraine saw out the remaining minutes to make sure of their place in the quarter-finals.

The quotes
“In the first half, we played really well. But I can’t be satisfied because of the way we played in the second half, when we conceded too many goals. The reason that happened was that we lost concentration. But we are through and now we will face another strong opponent. There are no weak teams at this stage of the competition,"
Gennadiy Lisenchuk, Ukraine coach.

“It’s a pity that we still give these kind of performances, showing such mental weakness. Our performance in the second half came naturally in a way because the scoreline was impossible to retrieve, so it released the players from pressure and responsibility. But at least we gave our fans something. Their support has been indispensable. They made it feel like we were playing at home,"
Miguel Rodrigo, Japan coach.




Courtesy: FIFA.com


Colombia stun Iran to advance

Colombia have caused a major upset at Thailand 2012 with a shock 2-1 victory over Iran at Bangkok’s Nimibutr Stadium. The South Americans can now look forward to a quarter-final against Ukraine after a win that, once again, proved that the only statistic that counts in football is the scoreline.

Iran were, after all, the game’s dominant force, monopolising possession and scoring attempts. But they faced an inspired keeper in Juan Lozano, and a tactical approach that paid dividends. The South Americans’ game-plan was evidently to sit deep and hit on the counter-attack, and ten minutes into the second half it produced the desired result.

With Iran having committed bodies forward, a long throw from the heroic Lozano found Yefri Duque in a one-on-one with Mostafa Nozari, and the Colombia No4 managed to angle his shot into the far corner. Stunned at falling behind, Iran were to find themselves in an even worse position soon after when a straight red card for Mostafa Tayyebi gave Los Cafateros a chance to increase their lead.

It was an opportunity they did not pass up, with Angellot Caro ensuring that the numerical advantage was fully utilised when he fired into the net from Jhonatan Toro’s pass. Iran refused to accept defeat though and pulled a goal back through Ali Rahnama, whose powerful shot beat the seemingly impenetrable Lozano low to his right.

However, Colombia held out for a result that sparked wild celebrations, and which already ranks among the biggest upsets in the history of this competition.

The quotes
“Colombia played the entire game with a defensive formation and when they got the ball, they just cleared it away. It was a great day for Colombia goalkeeper and a bad day for us,”
Ali Sanei, Iran coach.

“We didn’t play a perfect match because they created a lot of chances. But we were opportunistic and scored goals at key moments. We might not have played the most beautiful futsal but we know our strengths and what we needed to do to win the match. This is a historic moment for Colombia and we are not done yet,”
Arney Fonnegra, Colombia coach.




Courtesy: FIFA.com


Hosts out as Spain coast into quarters

Spain have set-up a quarter-final tie with either Russia or the Czech Republic after coasting to a 7-1 victory over hosts Thailand in the round of 16.

Having won all of the sides' five previous meetings, all of which were friendlies, the European champions were firm favourites to progress and their Asian opponents looked cautious as they tried to gain a footing in the game.

Thailand were being cheered on by a vocal crowd but it couldn’t prevent them falling behind after nine minutes, with Torras rounding off a counter-attack. That looked to spark the War Elephants into life, testing Spain a number of times, but Torras was on hand to double the lead before half-time, converting a cross at the far post.

Having switched ends, La Roja went about winning the game in calm and controlled manner befitting their tag as one of the tournament favourites. Thailand were intent on giving the crowd something to cheer about but the Spaniards were ruthless in punishing their attacking forays.

Dispossessing them all too easily, Spain made it 5-0 before the midpoint of the second-half, with Fernandao converting crosses from Alemao and Alcardo, before the latter added another.

Thailand took the bold step of removing their goalkeeper in a bid to find their way back into the game, but they were made to pay for their cavalier approach. First Ortiz, and then Alvaro struck from behind the halfway line to find the gaping goal.

However, just over a minute from the end, they managed a breakthrough. Kritsanda Wongkaeo fired in to the bottom right-hand corner of Spain’s net to give them the goal they wanted. The side celebrated as if they had won the game and duly left the tournament on the back of a priceless moment.

The quotes
“We played a great match. It could have been a very difficult game but we made it look easy. I think the key to winning was scoring the third and fourth goals in the second half. I want to congratulate Thailand because they decided to play offensive football and that is very good for futsal,”
Venancio Lopez, Spain coach.

“The difference today between Spain and Thailand is that when you take too many risks they’ll score. We had some chances when it was 0-0 but we failed to capitalise and against teams like Spain you must take the chances you have,”
Victor Hermans, Thailand coach.




Courtesy: FIFA.com


Hosts out but Colombian dream lives on

Sunday 11 November 2012

New boys Colombia provided the shock result of the first Round of 16 ties at the FIFA Futsal World Cup Thailand 2012.

The unfancied South Americans turned in a display bristling with courage and intent to eliminate Asian heavyweights Iran and book a place in the last eight. Los Cafeteros also rode their luck at times in a 2-1 victory over the ten-time Asian champions.

The fans at Nimibutr Stadium in Bangkok were hoping for an even bigger upset when the hosts took on European champions Spain, but La Furia Roja were having none of it and cruised to a 7-1 triumph.

In the first match of the day, Portugal were primed for a tough tussle with Paraguay, but the Iberians ended up firmly in control for most of the contest. Deadly duo Ricardinho and Cardinal were the brightest stars in a clear-cut 4-1 win for the southern Europeans.

Ukraine made even shorter work of Japan, at least in the first half, with the eastern Europeans half a dozen goals to the good at the interval. The Asian champions staged a stirring comeback in the second period, but it was all too late and Ukraine triumphed 6-3.

Results
Paraguay 1-4 Portugal
Ukraine 6-3 Japan
Spain 7-1 Thailand
Iran 1-2 Colombia

Goal of the day
Spain-Thailand, Kritsada Wongkaeo, 38'48
The game between the European champions and the host nation was long over as a contest when Thailand finally scored a deserved consolation goal, bowing out of the tournament on a positive note. Apiwat Chaemcharoen cleverly released Kritsada Wongkaeo in the Spanish area, where the striker wrong footed his marker with a disguised stepover and thumped the ball into the corner of the net, causing the partisan home crowd to erupt in joy.

Memorable moments

Ricardinho runs riot
In the meeting between Paraguay and Portugal, Ricardinho was the chief architect of the South Americans’ downfall and reaped warm applause from the engrossed crowd. The Portuguese No10 produced arguably the best individual display at this FIFA Futsal World Cup as he spearheaded his side's march into the next round. His pacy dribbling had La Albirroja chasing shadows for long spells, as the undisputed man of the match finished with two goals and an assist.

Fans in the spotlight
At the match between Spain and Thailand, and for the Ukraine-Japan clash, the real stars were the massed fans in the stands. Yet again, the atmosphere was crackling with passion when the hosts played Spain. The boisterous spectators waved national flags, showed off intricately painted faces, provided musical accompaniment and turned the venue into a cauldron of noise. Afterwards, the national team made a point of warmly thanking their fans. The Japanese supporters also confirmed their reputation as true lovers of futsal, greeting Ukraine coach Gennadiy Lisenchuk with warm and respectful applause before the match, and then maintaining a steady barrage of cheers for their team despite the situation on the pitch.

Sensational Cafeteros
Simply qualifying for the FIFA Futsal World Cup was already a success for Colombia. When they clinched the runners-up spot in Group F and a place in the last sixteen, that felt like the icing on the cake. But as it turned out, there was yet more to come: Los Cafeteros are through to the last eight courtesy of a knife-edge 2-1 victory over top Asian nation Iran. Yefri Duque and Angellott Caro scored precious goals for the South Americans, with keeper Juan Lozano performing heroics and allowing only one of Iran’s 54 shots to find the target.

Stat of the day
117 - The number of matches in Spain’s current undefeated run. The Spanish last lost in 2005, in a 2-1 friendly reverse against Brazil. The only team boasting a longer unbeaten streak are the selfsame South Americans. Between 2005 and 2010, A Seleção went an extraordinary 151 matches without defeat.

The words
"We were so much better in qualifying, and I thought we'd show that here at the World Cup. But we were unable to reproduce our best form, and that's a shame,"
Paraguay coach Fernando Leite

Next up
Monday 12 November (all times are local)
Italy-Egypt 16.00
Brazil-Panama 18.30
Russia-Czech Republic 18.30
Serbia-Argentina 21.00






Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com