Courtesy: UEFA.com


Barcelona wrap up third successive futsal treble

FC Barcelona boss Marc Carmona admitted it is not getting any easier after his side came from 2-0 down to wrap up the Spanish Liga championship with a penalty shoot-out win.

Saturday 22 June 2013

FC Barcelona boss Marc Carmona admitted this was the hardest yet as they completed their third successive Spanish treble on a tense night of futsal at the Palau Blaugrana.

Carmona's charges went into Friday's meeting with Murcia FS knowing a win would wrap up the best-of-five Spanish Liga championship title decider with a game to spare. They did it the hard way, fighting back from 2-0 down to draw 3-3 and after a scoreless period of extra time it went to penalties. There, goalkeeper Cristian denied José Ruíz, allowing Torras to seal victory and with it the title.

"Part of this title belongs to our fans; they have been so important to us and without them I am sure we wouldn't have arrived to where we are today," said Carmona, who has now won 14 major pieces of silverware with Barcelona. "Winning the league for a third consecutive time is very hard to do; this season was difficult, with some unexpected defeats."

For Barcelona, who lost their UEFA Futsal Cup title to Kairat Almaty in the last four in April, it was their final win against Murcia in a row and sealed a third straight treble of Liga, Copa del Rey and Copa España wins. Their latest triumph arrived in front of a record crowd of almost 6,500 supporters at the Palau Blaugrana, arriving hopeful that Barcelona could round of a series that began with a 1-0 win in their home opener last weekend before travelling to Murcia and losing 3-2 before a 6-3 victory.

They were not disappointed, but suffered an early scare as they fell 2-0 down inside the first four minutes. Goals from Fernandão and Sergio Lozano brought parity, before Miguelín and Aicardo exchanged strikes to send the contest into extra time. With neither side finding the breakthrough in the added period, captain Torras stepped up to strike the decisive penalty in the shootout.

Barcelona will begin the 2013/14 UEFA Futsal Cup in the elite round running from 19 to 24 November, with the draw on 18 October.

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