HOSTS HUMBLED BY DEFENDING CHAMPIONS

KUALA LUMPUR (30 Jan 2008) - Malaysia received a harsh a lesson in futsal from the reigning champion as Argentina strolled home to their second win in the KL World 5's at the Stadium Negara today.

Malaysia, winners over Indonesia on Tuesday, were found wanting against the South American giant and were hit for seven goals in a match, which not many had put their hopes on the host.

It started off promisingly for the Malaysians but once the Argentineans found their footing, problem loomed large and when their striker in chief Christian Borruto put one in the net for his fifth goal of the tournament, in the fourth minute, the signs were encouraging.

But to everybody's surprise, Malaysia were level in the 12th min via the effort of skipper Addy Azwan Zainal, the hopes were raised.

But not for long. Argentina pulled ahead in the very next minute with a goal from Mauro Taffarel and then Maximiliano Rescia made it 3-1 in the 14th min.

The cause was lost for Malaysia and although they tried hard to reduce the score line, things were not working in their favour.

Alamiro Vaporaki scored goal No. 4 for Argentina in the 15th min, and Taffarel was on target again in the 18th min, thanks to a deflection, and the South Americans taking a 5-1 lead into the dressing room.

The two goals in the second period, came from Iganicio Caviglia in the 21 st min and 35th min.

Malaysia's coach P.Balakrishnan: “There was no shame in our defeat because we fought hard and restricted them to a single-digit score. But we were up against a very good side and my hat off to the Argentineans.

"Nobody expected us to win and the Argentineans wanted to win badly because they were looking for a place in the last four and that made it difficult for us. We have Australia next and if we want to make the cut into the last four we have to beat them. No other result would be enough."

Argentina's coach Fernando Laranagga: "We are happy with the win because we need to maintain our winning form if we want to reach the last four. The gap between us is clear for all to see.

"And the score line doesn't mean a thing. For us we want a win and we got it."

The KL World 5’s takes place between 29th January and 3rd February 2008 at Stadium Negara, Malaysia’s first indoor stadium and a national heritage building. The event will be telecasted to over 310 million viewers across Asia on STAR Sports with over 100 hours of coverage, comprising 30 telecast hours, including 20 hours of live programming - translating into extensive media exposure for Malaysia.

The KL World 5’s will have a total purse of US$150,000, and feature 10 teams in this prestigious tournament. The event is expected to draw futsal fans from Malaysia and the region with the pedigree of the international teams such as Brazil, Argentina, Holland and England will join the likes of Asian champion Iran, China, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia and hosts Malaysia in action.






ESPN STAR Sports and the Ministry of Youth and Sports have a rich tradition of partnerships stemming from a multi-year strategic alliance signed in October 2005 to raise participation and interest in sport in Malaysia.


TODAY’S FIXTURES (30 Jan, 2008)

10am: China vs Thailand (1-5)
3pm: England vs Indonesia (2-7)
5pm: Argentina vs Malaysia (7-1)
7pm: Iran vs Brazil (LIVE on STAR Sports)
9pm: Holland vs China





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