Courtesy: FIFA.com


One minnow left amid the giants

Thursday 15 November 2012

The semi-finals of the FIFA Futsal World Cup Thailand 2012 see newcomers Colombia seeking to extend their dream run all the way to the final and the trophy itself. In their way stand three giants of the futsal world, in the shape of Italy, holders Brazil and two-time world champions Spain.

Spain and Italy are scheduled to square off in a repeat of their semi-finals at last February’s UEFA Futsal EURO and Brazil 2008. The other match sees Colombia take on Brazil for the first time at a FIFA Futsal World Cup.

Match of the day
Italy-Spain, Bangkok, Indoor Stadium Huamark, 16 November 2012, 17.00 (local time)

These two sides have met numerous times before, but their first encounter at this competition came four years in the semi-finals of Brazil 2008, when Spain snatched a 3-2 win in extra time. La Roja were again the victors eight months ago, at the semi-final stage of the UEFA Futsal EURO, with 1-0 the score on this occasion.

Despite history being against them, Italy are clearly in the mood to defy the odds. Their quarter-final against Portugal saw them overturn a 3-0 deficit to bounce back for a 4-3 win in extra time. Spain, meanwhile, had to show plenty of solidity in their defeat of Russia, whose group-stage performances marked them as a serious threat.

With both sides able to field full-strength teams, the match is a mouth-watering propect. Torras and Co will be looking to guide Spain to a remarkable fifth FIFA Futsal World Cup final in a row. Meanwhile Italy, led by Saad Assis, are chasing revenge against the side that also beat them 2-1 in the final of Chinese Taipei 2004.

Other highlights
World champions Brazil are clear favourites to defeat Colombia in the second semi-final. Not only do the Brazilians have more experience of big-match expectations, their opponents Colombia are widely regarded as party-crashers, springing the surprise of the tournament by beating Iran in the Round of 16 then edging out Ukraine in the quarter-finals.

But Brazil’s progress has not been as smooth as predicted. Indeed, they required a dazzling individual performance from veteran star Falcao to claim a 3-2 extra-time win against quarter-final opponents Argentina. Fans will be hoping that the iconic 35-year-old can continue the form he has shown since returning from injury in the round of 16.

Brazilian forward Je, however, will miss the game after being sent off against Argentina, while Colombia’s Yefri Duque will also be absent. The odds are against them but Colombia are determined to continue their run. As coach Arney Fonnegra said after the Ukraine match: “Why not dream of beating Brazil too?”

Player to watch
With Russia now out of the title race, a number of players will be eager to depose Eder Lima from the top of the goalscorers’ list. These include Italy’s on-form Rodolfo Fortino, who has six goals and three assists to his name thus far. The 29-year-old forward is one of only three players to find the net five games on the trot at Thailand 2012, alongside Brazil’s Neto and Russia's Sirilo, whose goal against Spain was not enough to keep his team in the tournament.

The stat
7 – The number of times Brazil have reached the semi-finals of the FIFA Futsal World Cup, making them the only side not to miss a final-four berth since the tournament’s inaugural edition in 1989. Spain are just one behind their fierce rivals, with six semi-final appearances, while Italy have three. At the other end of the scale, Colombia join Ukraine, Iran and Portugal as only the fourth side to make it this far at their debut FIFA Futsal World Cup - not including that 1989 event.

The words
“I expect it to be a close game, just like the one we played against Russia and the last time we played Italy at the Futsal EURO. But I think we can beat them again,” Spain coach Venancio Lopez.

The schedule
Italy-Spain (Bangkok, Indoor Stadium Huamark, 17.00)
Brazil-Colombia (Bangkok, Indoor Stadium Huamark, 19.30)
All times listed are local




Courtesy: FIFA.com


Satisfaction at the end of the road

Thursday 15 November 2012

Four teams bade farewell to the dream of making the semi-finals of the FIFA Futsal World Cup Thailand 2012 this Wednesday. Ukraine were unceremoniously ejected by giant-killers Colombia, while Argentina, Portugal and Russia were all edged in closely contested encounters.

Quarter-finals are always unforgiving, and Thailand 2012 proved no exception, with many of the eliminated sides harbouring hopes of going further. But there is a silver lining, as the lessons they have learnt are sure to stand them in good stead in the future.

Despite Ukraine’s unexpected loss to tournament debutants Colombia, coach Gennady Lisenchuk told FIFA.com that he thought “a number of teams have got much stronger and come on leaps and bounds. These sides are playing with enormous courage and at a much higher standard than in previous tournaments.”

In Thailand, Lisenchuk guided a squad that contained only five members of the side that competed at Brazil 2008, and was philosophical about their performance: “We have a number of young players. When they have more games under their belt they will learn more and their performances will improve. This will be a stronger team in the future.”

With Argentina two goals clear of Brazil at the end of the first half, their fans must have begun to believe that their side really could beat the world champions. Falcao had other ideas, however, scoring twice in the Auriverde's 3-2 comeback win that booked their slot in yet another FIFA Futsal World Cup semi-final.

Argentina are out, but they will take happy memories with them. Striker Martin Amas insisted that his team were getting ever closer to a win against their South American neighbours: “We had an excellent tournament and forced the best side in the world into extra time after going two goals up. Not many other teams have managed the same.”

“I believe that one day we’ll be on equal terms with them, if not better,” he added. “With Matias Lucuix and others now playing in Europe, the team can only improve in the future.”

Of all the sides to be knocked out, perhaps Portugal have the biggest cause for disappointment. With just over 11 minutes gone in their quarter-final against Italy, the Portuguese were 3-0 and firm favourites, but it was not to be. Italy fought back and levelled via Fortino with 46 seconds left on the clock to take the game into extra time, when a strike from Honorio sent Gli Azzurri to the semis.

“We were very upset to go out like that,” explained Portugal striker Cardinal, “and I feel we deserved better than to go home after the quarter-finals. Overall, it was a good tournament for us but we were hoping for more.”

Russia coach Sergey Skorovich, for his part, remained realistic after his side’s defeat by Spain: “We tried hard and wanted the victory, but as always seems to be the case, Spain go through and we go home!”

Skorovich and his charges join three other sides on a return flight from Thailand 2012. But even as they leave the tournament behind, the lessons they have learnt will stay with them.





Courtesy: FIFA.com


Caro: Brazil don't scare us

Thursday 15 November 2012

“I should probably pinch myself to see if this is all real,” said a beaming Angellott Caro as he emerged from the bowels of the Huamark Indoor Stadium. Caro’s Colombia had just pulled off yet another surprise victory at the FIFA Futsal World Cup Thailand 2012, knocking out a formidable Ukraine side to set up a semi-final encounter with holders Brazil. “Actually, I’d better not: if this is a dream, I don’t want to wake up!”

“What’s going on?” the skilful Colombian added jokingly in an interview with FIFA.com. “We came to Thailand with the aim of getting past the first round, and nothing more. If someone had told me before the World Cup that we would end up among the four best teams in the world, I would have told them they were completely mad. Now we have nothing to lose and everything to gain.”

Change of approach
Caro can perhaps be seen as the embodiment of Colombia’s transformation over the course of the tournament. Indeed, he, along with the rest of the team, has had to curb his natural attacking instincts in favour of tightening up in defence.

“It’s true, I always like going forward,” said Caro, who has three goals to his name so far at Thailand 2012. “But we played like that against Guatemala, and it cost us five goals. After that match, we realised that we first need to keep the ball out of our own net and then look to attack. The technical staff deserve great credit, as they were the ones who convinced us that this is the right approach.”

Colombia’s other main attribute, as Caro explained, has been their strength of character. “We Colombians have a tendency to be complacent, but that has not been the case for us here. After we knocked out Iran, we told ourselves that we were making history, but that we still hadn’t won anything. So we didn’t switch off and we played with complete concentration against Ukraine.”

During the interview, Brazil coach Marcos Sorato passed by and shared a warm embrace with Caro – a gesture that allowed us to delve a little deeper into the player’s background. “We’ve known each other since 2009, when, after the Bolivarian Games that year, I was called up by Argentinian coach Fernando Larranaga to be part of a Rest of the World side for a series of friendlies against Brazil,” Caro explained. “After that I moved to the Czech Republic, then Spain, and then to Venezuela, my current location, where I won the championship a short time ago.”

Caro’s national team coach, Arney Fonnegra, added: “He’s technically gifted, but he has a strong character that can sometimes work against him. He didn’t have a good start to the tournament and came in for some criticism, but he’s managed to change and now we’re all praising him. Once he’s finished maturing and understands all the things he can bring to the group, he’ll transform us into an even better team.”

Sights set on Brazil
Setting the inaugural edition of the competition aside, Colombia are just the fourth debutants to reach the semi-finals of a FIFA Futsal World Cup – an achievement they share with Iran, Ukraine and Portugal, who appeared in the last four of Hong Kong 1992, Spain 1996 and Guatemala 2000 respectively. None of those sides, however, made it all the way to the final.

“As I told you before, all of this is a bonus for us,” Caro said. “So we’re playing with freedom, having fun and enjoying ourselves. There’s a great deal of responsibility and effort involved too, but we’re enjoying it.”

Colombia’s next opponents are defending champions Brazil, who underlined their title credentials by coming from 2-0 down to beat Argentina in the quarter-finals. “We know them well,” Caro said. “They beat us comfortably (5-1) the last time we met, but we’re a different team now. They may let us play a bit more than the other teams we’ve faced but, with the quality they have, the slightest lapse in concentration can cost you a goal.”

Caro, for his part, is not at all overawed by his stellar semi-final opponents, and finished the interview on a note of optimism. “None of us here are scared,” he concluded. “Respectful, yes, because we know who they are and where they play. But that’s as far as it goes. If we didn't have faith in ourselves, we wouldn’t be here now. We have to dream!”




Courtesy: FIFA.com


Borja, Spain’s Italian connection

Thursday 15 November 2012

When Marca Futsal report back for training after this FIFA Futsal World Cup, one player may find that he has become suddenly unpopular. He is, after all, the sole Spaniard on the books of this Italian club, and Friday’s semi-final could well end with him having helped to eliminate his adopted country.

Borja, however, can live with unpopularity. The scenario that gives the Spain No10 nightmares, as he told FIFA.com, is the thought of being the butt of an entire dressing room’s jokes.

“If we win, I can definitely live with the consequences,” he said, laughing. “A much worst thing for me would be the opposite situation. Can you imagine the response I will receive if Italy win? I don’t even want to think about it! I know it will all be in the right spirit whoever wins, but I hope I am the one smiling when we meet again.”

Among those praying otherwise will be Marco Ercolessi, a team-mate at Treviso-based Marca, and a player against whom Borja will find himself in direct opposition. Not that he will be treating his friend any differently to the other Italian players before or during the match, with pre-match contact definitely off the menu.

“Marco’s a very good friend of mine,” said the Spain star, who will celebrate his 28th birthday on the day of the match. “But tomorrow he’s going to be a rival just like the rest of them. For that reason, I definitely won’t be calling or texting him before the match. The friendship is suspended for now.”

As one of only two players in the Spain squad who play their football overseas, Borja is something of an exception to the established rule. Yet although moving abroad last year was not a decision arrived at lightly, he harbours no regrets – and believes his Italian experience should be of benefit when he lines up against Gli Azzurri.

“I’m really enjoying it in Italy,” he said. “It’s obviously a change to move away from home, but the league itself is similar to Spain and, if anything, probably a little faster in terms of the tempo. I also think it should be an advantage for me, knowing the qualities and style of play of the Italian players as well as I do. I know they will give us a tough match. But we’re feeling good about ourselves and have no reason to fear anyone.”

Spain’s belief in their own ability and mental strength will only have been fortified by a hard-fought 3-2 win over a formidable Russia side. Now another all-European tie awaits, this time against a team that, while not possessing the Russians’ physical prowess, have more than enough technical ability to trouble their old adversaries.

“Italy have very different characteristics to Russia and play a different kind of football, but I expect the game to be just as difficult,” said Borja. “And one thing’s for sure: we’re going to have to work a lot, and sweat a lot, if we’re going to win.

“Right now, we’re just happy and relieved to be through. Russia are such a strong team and we always knew that it was going to be a very tough, very physical match. We have faced each other many times and I think you could see that we know and respect each other a lot. Faced with a team like Russia, you just want to do enough to get through. Thankfully, we showed that we have the mentality to achieve our goal.”

No prizes for guessing what that goal is. For a team that lost out on the trophy by the slimmest of margins in 2008, edged out on penalties by hosts Brazil, only the trophy itself will be enough. Nonetheless, Borja - a veteran of that 2008 campaign – believes the challenge of topping the podium has become tougher than ever.

He explained: “I’ve noticed that this World Cup has been a lot more difficult than the last one, for everyone. The gap between the ‘big’ teams and the rest is getting smaller and smaller, and that can only be good for the sport. For us though, it’s making things an awful lot tougher.”

Almost as tough, in fact, as Borja’s life in Treviso will be should Spain lose.






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