Courtesy: FIFA.com

Universidad Autónoma de Asunción eye continental prize

(FIFA.com) 30 Aug 2005

Futsal's appeal continues to spread at an impressive rate across the globe, with South America, unsurprisingly, being one of the regions with the fastest growth. Taking their lead from Brazil, already a powerhouse in the global game, the rest of the region has made remarkable progress on every level. It came as no surprise therefore when the final of the 4th edition of the CONMEBOL Sudamericano Futsal Club Championship (Southern Zone), held last month in Asunción, Paraguay, attracted a capacity crowd of 4,000 and became the talking point for the region's burgeoning futsal fan base.
The decider saw Universidad Autónoma de Asunción run out emphatic 6-1 winners over Uruguay's Melvín and earn the right to take on the champions of the Northern Zone tournament to be held in Lima, Peru, between 24 and 29 October this year. It is the first time in the competition's history that a Paraguayan side have had this distinction.

The Southern Zone tournament, which concluded on 29 July, featured Universidad Autónoma de Asunción and Cerro Porteño from Paraguay, Argentina's San Lorenzo de Almagro and Argentinos Juniors, Uruguay's Melvín and Peñarol, and Business and Patricio Gómez from Chile.

Universidad Autónoma and Melvín made sure there would be no all-Argentine final by beating Argentinos Juniors and San Lorenzo in their respective semis. And then just when the stage looked set for an evenly fought decider, the local team put on an inspired display to convincingly win the title. Adolfo Ruiz Díaz, coach of the triumphant Guaraní outfit, analysed the victory thus: "We played in the knowledge that all of Paraguay were behind us. Fortunately, things worked out almost to perfection. That's how we managed to achieve the objective we set ourselves at the start of the tournament."

The Paraguayan side had further cause for celebration after their nine-goal hero Fernando Ferla was awarded the tournament Golden Boot, and his team-mate Santiago Blankleider the Golden Ball.


Jorge Seré and Adolfo Ruiz Díaz, coaches of Malvín and Universidad Autónoma de Asunción
Gentileza ALFIERI PHOTO
"This shows the quality of opponent we defeated here. Luckily we were able to play to our strengths and exploit the opposition's weaknesses, preventing them from playing their game. We thoroughly deserved it," added Ruiz Díaz.

Undoubtedly, one of the keys to Universidad Autónoma's triumph was their solid defending, which saw goalkeeper Carlos Espínola concede the least number of goals of the competing sides.

The Sudamericano Club Championship is futsal's equivalent to the Copa Libertadores in that it brings together the top sides from each country to compete for a continental crown. Organised by the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) and now in its fourth year, the championship is divided into separate Northern and Southern Zones, each with the same number of competitors. A host city is decided on and all the games for a particular zone are held there. The winners from both zones then meet in a two-legged decider, normally in one of the finalists' countries, for the right to be called continental champions.

José María Zubizarreta, President of the Southern Zone Organising Committee, has said that they will be lobbying for the finals to be played in Paraguay too: "We've demonstrated that we can properly organize a competition of this stature. The public responded magnificently and filled the stadium. Moreover, as our opponents are likely to be Brazilian, it could be our big chance to measure ourselves against the finest exponents of futsal."

Although the individual clubs have yet to be confirmed for the Northern Zone tournament, the champions of Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela and Ecuador will all be present.

Tournament summary
The tournament games were played at the 4,000-seater Estadio de la Dirección General de Deportes (DGD) in Asunción, Paraguay.


César Riveros (L), scorer of two goals in the final, challenges Fernando Ferla, de Malvín, winner of the "Golden Boot".
Gentileza ALFIERI PHOTO
Group A
Cerro Porteño (Paraguay)
Argentinos Juniors (Argentina)
Malvín (Uruguay)
Business (Chile)
Group B
Universidad Autónoma de Asunción (Paraguay)
San Lorenzo (Argentina)
Peñarol (Uruguay)
Patricio Gómez (Chile)

RESULTS

Day 1 - 25/7/2005
Malvín 3-3 Argentinos Juniors
Peñarol 2-2 San Lorenzo
UAA 8-1 Patricio Gómez
Cerro Porteño 10-2 Business

Day 2 - 26/7/2005
Patricio Gómez 3-6 Peñarol
Business 5-17 Malvín
Cerro Porteño 4-4 Argentinos Juniors
UAA 4-4 San Lorenzo

Day 3 - 27/7/2005
Business 1-10 Argentinos Juniors
Patricio Gómez 2-7 San Lorenzo
UAA 2-2 Peñarol
Cerro Porteño 5-6 Malvín

STANDINGS

Group A: 1st Malvín: 7 pts (+13 goal difference), 2nd Argentinos Juniors: 5pts (+9),
3rd Cerro Porteño: 4pts (-7), 4th Business: 0pts (-29).

Group B: 1st Universidad Autónoma Asunción: 5 pts (+7), 2nd San Lorenzo: 5pts (+5), 3rd Peñarol: 5pts (+3), 4th Patricio Gómez: 0pts (-15)

SEMI-FINALS - 28/7/2005
Malvín 7-2 San Lorenzo
UAA 3-2 Argentinos Juniors

FINAL - 29/7/2005
Universidad Autónoma de Asunción 6-1 Malvín




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