Courtesy: UEFA.com


London ready for Futsal first

Friday, 9 September 2005

by Greg Demetriou

from London

The UEFA Futsal Cup is back with a four-team mini-tournament getting the 2005/06 competition under way in London over the weekend.

European debutants
English entrants London White Bear FC are the hosts for the round-robin event, which will feature three other European debutants: Tal Grig Yerevan from Armenia, Dinamo Tirana from Albania and Roubaix Futsal from France. The top two teams after the three days of action on Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday will progress to the first qualifying round.

'Winning mentality'
London coach Oleksandr Saliy is confident his side can put on a good show in front of their supporters at the Crystal Palace national sports centre in south London. The Ukrainian has a cosmopolitan squad comprising players from nine countries and believes his charges have the "winning mentality".

Unknown quantity
However, the 36-year-old concedes he does not know too much about their rivals, particularly the French and Albanian champions. "I think we have a chance," he said. "But we don't know the level of our opponents. We will see what happens and I am sure my players will do their best."

English boost
Saliy added he expected the Armenian team to pose the biggest threat, especially as they boast several experienced internationals. "They will be strong and they are the favourites," said Saliy. Yet, regardless of his side's display, the mini-tournament will do much to raise the sport's profile in England.

Prolific players
Yerevan enjoyed a tremendous 2004/05 season, not dropping a single point. They also have two top-class performers in Armen Gyulambaryan and Armen Danielyan. The 30-year-old Gyulambaryan scored 127 goals last term, making him Europe's leading marksman, while the 25-year-old Danielyan was voted Player of the Year by the Football Federation of Armenia.

Coach excited
Coach Ruben Nazaretyan, who turned 29 on Monday, is excited about seeing his men in continental competition. "We have never played in such a tournament before," he said. "We are sure there are no weak teams, but the only thing that could hamper us is our lack of experience at such a level. We will give it our best shot."

Mullaj involved
Albanian Futsal is also at a fledgling stage. Dinamo were beaten finalists in the first two domestic championships but were able to represent their country after 2004/05 champions KS Erzeni were stripped of their title over ineligible players. Dinamo have several internationals, not least Ani Mullaj, with the 22-year-old scoring eight goals in last season's UEFA Futsal Cup for SK Tirana.

Tirana example
The club are coached by 46-year-old Albert Celmeta, of whom good things are expected. He has every confidence his team can hold their own and reach the next stage, as Tirana did in last year's preliminary round thanks to a 6-4 victory against another English side, Sheffield Hallam FC.

Fighting spirit
Roubaix are perhaps the biggest unknown quantity of those on view. They were formed in 2004, although a team previously existed under the name Roubaix Trois Ponts. The club won the French Futsal Cup in March by recovering a 3-1 deficit to draw level before beating Issy-les-Moulineaux Futsal 3-1 on spot-kicks.

'Nothing is impossible'
Coach Malik Laouar, himself just 28, has put faith in young players. Given the unexpected nature of their domestic triumph against a side containing several French internationals, Laouar said of Roubaix's European chances: "For us, nothing is impossible." They have a number of players tipped for the big time, not least 22-year-old goalkeeper Djamel Haroun and 25-year-old defender Mounir Khrouf.



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