Courtesy: www.uefa.com
Thursday, 01 May 2003


Top two vying for European crown

The winners of the 2003 UEFA Futsal Cup will be decided in Spain this Saturday with holders Playas de Castellón and Action 21 Charleroi level at 1-1 from the first leg.


Spectacular volley
Castellón will fancy their chances of defending their crown after scoring a priceless away goal in Belgium on 16 April. Brazilian inspiration Vander Carioca was the hero with a spectacular second-half volley, although Charleroi were able to level the tie with a well-taken goal by Mohamed Boukamir. The Spanish side will be roared on by their usual noisy support, with a capacity crowd expected at the Pabellón Ciudad de Castellón for a match being televised live in both countries.

Magnificent milestone
Particular acclaim will be given to Javi Sánchez, a key man in the first game, who played his 100th international for Spain in a friendly against Iran earlier this week. He is expected to feature heavily on Saturday, along with Javi Rodríguez who was banned from the first leg, while Vander Carioca's domestic suspension will not stop him from playing.

Play-off hope
Fully fit Castellón have qualified for the Spanish play-offs but were out of the running for the regular season title a long time ago and were eliminated from the Spanish Cup at the semi-final stage. The league programme was actually due to end for Faustino Pérez's team on Saturday, but Castellón's final match was then brought forward to Thursday because of the second leg.

Unbeaten in league
Charleroi have had a particularly hectic time since earning the home draw against the Spanish holders on 16 April. First, they ended the Belgian regular season on a high with a 4-2 win at Eurosport Bocholt. The victory meant they won all 26 league games, and are the firm favourites in the play-offs.

Toukouki fracture
However, on Wednesday, they were stunned in the final of the Belgian Cup. After an astonishing 9-9 draw against TBO Antwerp, Charleroi were beaten 5-4 on penalties. Missing from that match was Belgian international Mustafa Toukouki, who suffered a fractured toe in training the previous week and he will not play on Saturday.

Still suspended
There was some good news though for coach Ricardo Menezes da Silva. Bjorn Rotsaert was unscathed after being involved in a car accident and captain Boukamir appears to be over a thigh complaint but Pedro Medina, who has put his recent back troubles behind him, is still suspended from European competition after picking up a two-match ban in the second qualifying round.

Travelling fans
While Charleroi, who were beaten 5-1 by Castellón in the one-off final for the 2002 UEFA Futsal Cup, will be the underdogs in Spain they will at least have some support. A busload of more than 50 enthusiastic supporters left the Belgian town on Thursday afternoon to cheer on their team. Whether they will leave the Spanish city in high spirits remains to be seen.