Courtesy: UEFA.com


Benatti hails brave champions

Saturday, 30 April 2005

Action 21 Charleroi are celebrating tonight after winning the UEFA Futsal Cup for the first time, in their third final. However, their match against hosts MFK Dinamo Moskva twisted and turned. Dinamo, 4-3 down from the first leg, scored early on, but had to strike in the last minutes to force extra time - in which they trailed and led before two goals in the final minutes gave Charleroi, who had Robinho sent off, victory.

Sergio Benatti, Charleroi coach
I am delighted because it was the most difficult - and most important - match of my career as coach. I was afraid because the players have never experienced this intensity of this sort of match before. It was difficult because Dinamo scored right at the start, but I reorganised the players and that was important. When Charleroi scored the third goal if gave the players hope. It was a difficult and incedible match and when Dinamo went 6-4 up I thought it was impossible to come back, but the players held on for the club and for the shirt, and I am very happy for the players, supporters and club.

Yuri Rudnev, Dinamo coach
The result is logical, but the two teams players as collective units. Congratulations to Charleroi for their tactics, our tactics were not so good but we pressed well and Brazilian players don't like being under pressure. At 6-4 Pelé and Joan both had incredible misses, and when Charleroi scored again physically and mentally we could not come back. I would like to thank our fans who gave their all, but Charleroi were too strong.