Castellón retain Futsal crown

Playas de Castellón retained the UEFA Futsal Cup with a 6-4 win against Action 21 Charleroi that sealed a 7-5 aggregate victory.

First-leg draw
Having defeated the same opponents 5-1 in 2002's inaugural final, Castellón were in confident mood ahead of the match at their Pabellón Ciudad de Castellón as they looked to build on the 1-1 draw they achieved in Belgium on 16 April, and were delighted with the result. "Mission accomplished," said Castéllon coach Tino Pérez.

'Greatest achievement'
Javi Sánchez, scorer of two goals, was equally pleased. "This season's win was the greatest achievement because the standard of Futsal in Europe is much higher," he said. "It's very satisfying to prove we have been the best."

Bright start
The home team began brightly, with Josema twice shooting just wide, and took the lead after six minutes as Alemao intercepted a pass from Lúcio Rosa and raced clear before dragging the ball wide of goalkeeper Luca Cragnez and scoring.

Success for Sánchez
Three minutes later, it was 2-0, as Javi Sánchez burst on to a defence-splitting through-ball and shot powerfully into the net. The same player made it three a minute later, as Isco rolled a pass to Vander Carioca on the edge of the penalty area, and he laid on for Sánchez to slide in to send the ball into the roof of the net.

Charleroi comeback
However, despite the early setbacks, Charleroi kept their heads - although Cragnaz was called upon to make a number of fine stops to prevent the home side extending their lead. After 17 minutes, Charleroi pulled a goal back, as Leo played a one-two with Lúcio Rosa and shot into the net from well outside the penalty area to give the Belgian side hope.

Tension mounts
Two minutes later, and seconds before half-time, the deficit was reduced to a single goal, as Lúcio Rosa burst down the left and prodded past Toni to set up an intriguing second half.

Crucial goals
Both sides began the second half somewhat nervously, and clear chances were few and far between in the early exchanges, but two goals in a minute suddenly restored the home side's three-goal lead. First, Josema shot in from well outside the area, before Vander Carioca ghosted in unnoticed to sidefoot Javi Rodríguez's low cross into the net at the far post.

Frantic finale
Once again, however, Charleroi refused to concede defeat, as Andre pulled another goal back after 30 minutes, sliding the ball into an empty net after Leo's shot had been blocked. Three minutes later, Andre set up an exciting finish, as he found himself with time and space on the left-hand side of the Castellón area and slid the ball beyond Toni.

Decisive late strike
However, Charleroi were unable to find an equaliser, with the home side's defence holding firm before Toni broke up an attack with two minutes to go, and the ball broke to Vander Carioca, who raced down the left and crossed for an unmarked Alemao to round off the victory, sidefooting into an unguarded net from two metres.