BRAZIL STAMP THEIR CLASS WITH WIN OVER IRAN

Host Nation Outshined by Defending Champions Argentina

KUALA LUMPUR (30 Jan 2008) – Brazil stamped their class with a hard-fought 4-0 win over Iran, edging them closer to winning the KL World 5's title which eluded them five years ago.

They took care of the Asian giant, Iran in their second match of the tournament at the Stadium Negara in Kuala Lumpur today to set themselves up for a place in the last four after their victory over China in their opening game on Tuesday.

It was the most entertaining match of the day, earning the applause of the many supporters from the earlier match between Malaysia and Argentina, where the hosts lost 1-7.

Malaysia , winners over Indonesia on Tuesday, were found wanting against the South American giant and found themselves done in by the silky skills of striker Christian Borruto as the defending champions raced to a 5-1 lead at the break before adding further goals in the second half for the comprehensive win.

In comparison, the Iranians who arrived in the Malaysian capital late on Tuesday night following a delay in their flight because of the cold weather back home complained of jet lag and tiredness. But to their credit they gave a good account of themselves in their bid to protect their own reputation as the kingpins of Asian futsal took the game to the Brazilians.

At times they did everything right but only to find a giant stumbling block in the heroics of the Brazilian goalkeeper Tiago Marinho, who single-handedly denied the Iranians of the goals they fought so hard for.

However, the Brazilians just could not be contained for long, despite missing their inspirational Alessandro Viera, or better known as Falcao, they were always going to be a threat.

Lenisio Texiera opened scoring in the 15th min as they took control of the midfield but only to see some stout defending from the Iranians which restricted the Brazilians to a slender lead at the break.

But Teixeira was on target again in the 23rd min and then William Morais made it 3-0 in the very next minute and the Iranians were forced to open up.

Skipper Vahid Shamsaee rallied his men forward but then again just when they thought they had found the net, the long reach of Marinho was there to save Brazil.

Mithyue Linhares, who is said to be the next superstar of Brazilian futsal completed the score line with his 31st min goal.

Iran coach Hossein Shams:" We played the world's No 1 futsal team and the Brazilians are very strong. Tiredness aside, we did everything right and we played according to plan. I have no complains at all. Not about my players or the score line. But we will get better as the tournament goes along and we will be in the final."

Said Brazil coach, Paulo Oliveira:" We are proud to play Iran who is not a team to be treated lightly. It was an open game and they could have scored first and maybe the final result would have been different. I must admit that we did not have an ideal preparation coming to the tournament here. The players were just back from a one-month holiday and we got them together for a week before flying out to Malaysia."

In the other Group B match, Holland made sure that they are still in the running for a place in the semi-finals of the KL World 5s this year when they pulled out all the stops to beat China 3-1 in their second match in Group B here at the Stadium Negara.

Following from their 3-3 draw against Thailand the previous day, Holland were not in a compromising mood when they scored as early as the 7th minute off Calvin Blankendal for a slim 1-0 lead at the break.

A brace from Karim Ajnane in the 26th and 29th made sure that the Dutch were comfortably in front before China pulled a goal back from Wang Wei in the 31st minute.

China’s loss meant that they would be out of contention for the final four. Holland’s next match in the KL World 5s will be against Iran tomorrow.
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.

RESULTS (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 (0-4)
9pm: Holland vs China (3-1)

FIXTURES (31 Jan, 2008)

10am: Australia vs Malaysia
1pm: Holland vs Iran
3pm: Indonesia vs Argentina
6pm: Brazil vs Thailand
9pm: England vs Australia




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