Courtesy: UEFA.com

UEFA Futsal EURO group stage round-up

See the best moments from the group stage at UEFA Futsal EURO 2014 with spectacular goals including top scorer Eder Lima's acrobatic equaliser for Russia against Portugal.

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Courtesy: UEFA.com


Italy see off Croatia challenge

Tuesday 4 February 2014

Sergio Romano and Fortino scored either side of Franko Jelovčić's stunning equaliser to set up a semi-final between Italy and Portugal.


Italy 2-1 Croatia by Paul Saffer from Sportpaleis

Italy will face Portugal in the UEFA Futsal EURO 2014 semi-finals on Thursday after seeing off the challenge of Croatia.

Having conceded almost immediately to Sergio Romano, Croatia levelled with Franko Jelovčić's stunning solo goal, but Fortino soon restored a lead Italy were never to lose.

Italy could not have wished for a better start, Romano beating Ivo Jukić from close range after the keeper had denied both him and Gabriel Lima. Scoring early was the key to Italy defeating Azerbaijan 7-0 on Sunday, but Croatia, who had Dario Marinović fit after injury, conceded first in their 3-3 draws with Spain and the Czech Republic, and nearly let in another as Romano's shot went across the face of goal.

Croatia's Tihomir Novak, a team-mate of Italy's Fortino and Lima at ASD Asti C/5, missed the target in similar style, but the equaliser came in the seventh minute as one of the revelations of the finals, Jelovčić, received the ball on the left, brilliantly jinked his way past the defence and Stefano Mammarella, then rolled his shot from a tight angle in off the far post.

However, Italy soon responded when Fortino diverted Vampeta's kick-in through the legs of Jukić. The goalkeeper did deny Fortino from point-blank range after a corner, and the open nature of the game continued, typical of Croatia's style all tournament.

The Azzurri played sensible possession futsal after the break, though from distance Lima made Jukić tip over. Croatia took ten minutes to come into the half, Marinović testing Mammarella from distance. Jelovčić came even closer, hitting the inside of the post and Mammarella denied Novak as Croatia pressed.

Fortino then hit the bar, and that was the cue for Matija Capar to make his now traditional appearance as flying goalkeeper. Mammarella got down to a Jelovčić strike, and Marinović shot wide, but unlike in Croatia's two group games, a late equaliser was beyond even Capar, while with just three seconds left Novak, to his despair, smashed a shot against the post.


Courtesy: UEFA.com


Slovenia bow out to ruthless Spain

Tuesday 4 February 2014

A clinical display from holders Spain ended Slovenia's impressive challenge and set up a Thursday semi-final against old rivals Russia.

Slovenia 0-4 Spain

by Paul Saffer from Sportpaleis

A clinical display from Spain ended Slovenia's impressive UEFA Futsal EURO 2014 challenge and set up a Thursday semi-final with Russia.

Fernandão and Rafa Usín struck in the first half to ensure Spain remain on course for a fifth straight title. However, they meet a stiff challenge in Russia, who pushed them all the way in the 2012 final – one of many crucial encounters between the nations in recent years.

Slovenia, almost scored in the second minute when Rok Mordej's deep corner was met by a stinging volley by Kristjan Čujec well saved by Rafa. For Spain, there was the boost of Lin and Miguelín's returns to fitness after captain Torras had been ruled out of the finals with a knee injury, and early on Raúl Campos forced a block from Alen Mordej, favoured above Damir Puškar in goal.

Miguelín himself was used early and shot wide not long before being denied by Alen Mordej, but Slovenia were more than holding their own with accurate passing and a willingness to shoot, especially on the part of Alen Fetič. However, Spain never cease to be dangerous and in the 12th minute Ortiz touched a kick-in to Sergio Lozano, who strode down the right touchline and centred for FC Barcelona colleague Fernandão to tap in.

José Ruiz hit the post later in the half after a corner from Lin, but it was 2-0 at the break when Campos won the ball and found Usín, whose low shot rolled in through a crowded box.

Spain controlled possession well early in the second half, and Ortiz's free-kick on the edge of the area came to Campos for a shot blocked well, and Fernandão also came close after teeing the ball up for himself.

Rafa excelled with a reaction save from Gašper Vrhovec, and clear chances for Slovenia were few, even after Fetič donned the flying goalkeeper's shirt. Aicardo removed any lingering doubt with a low finish from outside the box, and in the dying seconds he shot into an empty net from his own half. However, there was a blow for Spain when defender Ortiz was booked, ruling him out against Russia.




Courtesy: UEFA.com


Relief for Italy after Croatia onslaught

Tuesday 4 February 2014

Roberto Menichelli and Stefano Mammarella were glad Italy showed their mettle in a tight 2-1 quarter-final defeat of Croatia, whose keeper Ivo Jukić held his hands up for a decisive error.

by Paolo Menicucci & Paul Saffer from Sportpaleis

Roberto Menichelli, Italy coach
We made it. I think it's normal to be up against it in a quarter-final of the European championship against a great team like Croatia. They have very good players and a great coach. I want to congratulate Mato [Stanković] – his side are well organised and he did a great job. It was difficult for us physically because just two days ago we had a tough game against Azerbaijan so Croatia were certainly fresher than us.

I told my players that they were very good today. We were prepared for a game similar to the one against Slovenia [a 3-2 defeat]. We knew we were facing a team able to close space down and dangerous on counterattacks. The worst mistake we could have made was to give them chances on the counter. We were very good in limiting those. We could have killed the game off but I'm happy because when you are up against it but still stay on your feet, it means you are in good form.

We wanted to confirm ourselves among the best teams in Europe. We are among the best again and this is important for us because it means we always rise to the occasion in big tournaments like this.

Stefano Mammarella, Italy goalkeeper
It was a great relief [when Croatia hit the post at the death] because there were a few seconds left and conceding would have been a bad blow, especially because we just had a good chance to kill the game, when Vampeta failed to reach a ball that was just too long for him. When I saw that ball hitting the post I immediately thought about the game against Croatia two years ago [when Italy finished third by beating Croatia 3-1].

You know you have to struggle when you play a do-or-die game, a European championship quarter-final. If you take a two-goal lead, like what happened against Azerbaijan, everything is easier because your opponents have to open up. But Croatia never gave us space. They are a very good team, who always manage to defend deep – they are aggressive on the ball and hit well on the counter.

[The past games against semi-final opponents Portugal] are all great memories – great games. I think we have faced them four or five times since I started playing for the national team and it has always been a nice contest – it was always fun to play against them and it will be very exciting again. Ricardinho is absolutely the number one, but they also have Cardinal in fantastic form.

Mato Stanković, Croatia coach
What can I say? It was a very close match. Neither ourselves not Italy played at their usual standard, but it was still a very interesting game. That's life – this time we couldn't score with a flying goalkeeper, though we created some chances. Italy are a great team and I wish them luck in the rest of the tournament.

We have proved ourselves to be a very good team. That is important for Croatia – we are a very small country, we don't have the strongest national league, but we showed the world a good standard of futsal, and that is very important for us. Step by step, we are going up the UEFA rankings and maybe with a better ranking we might get an easier draw – we will see in the future. But we have only been going seriously for three or four years, we have the youngest team here. We were the youngest two years ago, now we are even younger.

Ivo Jukić, Croatia goalkeeper & captain
We played a very good game. In the second half we had a lot of chances, hit the woodwork twice, but had no luck and with the individual mistakes we made it is impossible to beat a team like Italy. The biggest one was my mistake to let in the second. It is something you cannot do against Italy and it maybe cost us a place in the semi-finals.

We had a very, very good tournament – we played very good futsal, but we are not happy about this result. To an outsider, it might have seemed that Italy were big favourites, but we knew we could compete with them. We knew that we could win, so we are very disappointed that it didn't happen.

Franko Jelovčić, Croatia goalscorer
Like my captain said, we made two big individuals mistakes. It was an easy goal to allow Italy to regain the lead. He didn't know where the ball was and made a mistake – that's futsal. I am happy with the second half – we played very well, hit the woodwork twice, and with a little bit of luck we would have scored.

It was unbelievable [when Tihomir Novak hit the post with three seconds left]. I was thinking, could we do it again… It doesn't happen every day.

[For my goal] the ball came to me, I got away from my marker and then it happened – it only takes one second. I scored, it got us back into the game, but then we conceded the second.

With a little bit more experience we will be a very good team. We have to train and not make these kinds of mistakes. That is how results will come. I think we improve every day, and I hope in the next tournament we can go further.



Courtesy: UEFA.com


Spain 'outstanding, Slovenia improving

Spain's players and coach hailed an almost perfect display in beating Slovenia 4-0, tarnished only by Ortiz's semi-final ban, while their opponents are proud of their progress.

Tuesday 4 February 2014

by Gonzalo Aguado & Paul Saffer from Sportpaleis

José Venancio López, Spain coach
I think we had an outstanding game. We did not make any mistakes in defence. Their heads dropped in the final moments because they saw that it was impossible to turn the game around. We kept up a very high pace for 40 minutes and they could not keep up with us. Slovenia are a great team, but they did not surprise us – we had studied them very well. We covered their tracks and continued to play at a high level. We were great in defence and we were smart in attack. When they had a flying goalkeeper, we defended very well.

Russia are the toughest opponents we could have [in Thursday's semi-final]. We are going to study them well and we will try to raise our game. If we play like today we have a chance. It is a shame that [injured] Torras and [suspended] Ortiz can not play. They are very important players for us, but this team will flourish in adversity.

Aicardo, Spain defender
We played very well today and competed brilliantly. We have learned to endure because they are a good side.

I did not hear until late in the game someone said that [Ortiz] couldn't play [against Russia]. But, hey, we all have to step forward and replace Jordi [Torras] and Ortiz. I'm ready for whatever the coach asks of me. He is the one who decides and if he wants me to play, I'll be there.

The match against Russia will be decided by small details. We have to be focused for 40 minutes and take advantage of set-pieces. They play great with the pivots, with Eder Lima and Cirilo. We must stop balls getting to them.

This team improves with every game. Every match we take a step forward and now the really good part is coming up. We are playing against Russia – an incredible team. Hopefully we will get to the final, but we must take it step by step and think about Russia first – it won't be easy.

Rafa, Spain goalkeeper
It was our best game yet, especially in defence. Our first half was great, maintaining very good pressure. Then we maintained this intensity and we got a good win. If we want to win, we have to play better against Russia. Along with us, Russia are the best team. It's like an early final. It will be a nice game to play.

Keeping a clean sheet is a source of pride for me. These games are very tough in defence and I always have to stop shots. If the defence is good, I am fine.

The draw against Croatia [3-3 on Wednesday] was good for us. If we do not play at 100%, anyone can beat us. Against Croatia, were not ourselves, and that meant we drew the match. But then we won 8-1 against the Czech Republic, putting on a good performance, and this time we were even better.

It's a shame about the second yellow card which means Ortiz is not allowed to play on Thursday. Russia have very good pivots and he wanted to play against them. The team will feel his absence, that's for sure. We all have to make up for the absence of the missing players.

Andrej Dobovičnik, Slovenia coach
Spain's victory was deserved – they were much better than us. We did our best, but we are short of options on the bench to get close to a team like Spain. However, we do have the will and the strength to do more to close that gap.

[On starting with Alen Mordej rather than Damir Puškar in goal] Going into the tournament we had two high-quality goalkeepers, but before the start of the finals they had slight injuries. I think we did the right thing to give both young goalkeepers the chance to experience a tournament like this.

Of course, this is one step forward – we are glad the team is improvement and each individual is getting better and better. As long as this goes on, there is nothing for Slovenian futsal to be afraid of.

Igor Osredkar, Slovenia captain
It was a very difficult game, Spain are the best team in the world – we tried our hardest, but today Spain were the better team and I congratulate them for their win. We are now out of the tournament but we have gained experience and we must be pleased that we were in the quarter-finals.

Just six or seven players tend to play so we are really tired. We have had three tough matches and Spain have a lot of players, ten or 12 – this is the difference between us and Spain. We rotate just six or seven players and Spain have a lot of experience. We are a young team and we have a lot to learn.

This was a big experience for us. This is the first [time we gained] points in the European championship and we have to be happy and proud. I am proud of my team – what we did in this tournament was great.






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