Boomerang take Futsal crown

Boomerang Interviú won the UEFA Futsal Cup for the second time thanks to an inspired performance from fill-in goalkeeper Rafa as they made full use of their first-leg lead against MFK Dinamo Moskva, beaten again in the final 12 months after losing to Action 21 Charleroi.

Bright start
Dinamo, who were 6-3 down after the first match in Madrid last week, started the brighter, as Rafa - in for the injured Luis Amado - was forced into action on three minutes. Sirilo flashed a first-time snapshot at him before Neto blocked an effort from Pelé on the rebound. However, an immediate counterattack could have seen Boomerang in front, but Schumacher could only hit the post.

Hosts unfazed
The hosts, unfazed by this lapse, continued to pile on the pressure, Tatu firing over and Rafa saving from Pavel Kobzar before Boomerang responded with Marquinho and Schumacher both going close. It was the Russian side who did get the breakthrough however, Kobzar feeding Sirilo on the edge of the six-metre area before the Brazilian spun off his marker and placed a precise shot into the bottom corner on eight minutes.

Stepanov leveller
Within four minutes the scores on the day were tied again however, Julio making the most of a deflection off Pavel Stepanov to make it 1-1, a scoreline that would remain the same until half-time, thanks in the main to some superb goalkeeping from Rafa.

Dinamo energy
Dinamo added more energy and movement after the interval, and it was Kobzar who made Rafa work again on 21 minutes, with Pelé unable to make the most of the rebound. The visitors responded through Marquinho, who took advantage of Pelé’s mistake from a quick counter to hit the post, much to the relief of the packed Druzhba crowd in Moscow.

Rafa heroics
Dinamo had further chances to score through Sirilo, Kelson, Tatu, Konstantin Maevski and Pelé, but all of their efforts were quashed by the outstanding Rafa. With five minutes left in the game, Dinamo coach Aleksandr Shibayev opted for his last throw of the dice, taking off goalkeeper Stepanov and introducing Maevski as a fifth outfield player. It was a gamble that paid off a minute later.

Careless mistake
Dinamo's Joan finished off a fine pass by Tatu from close-range to make it 2-1, but the visitors restored parity straight away, Daniel punishing Alexandre Rakhimov for a careless mistake. However, Maevski responded immediately with a long-range goal to make it 3-2, and seconds later it took another majestic save by Rafa to prevent a Maevski free-kick from making the score 4-2.

Second trophy
On 39 minutes, Dinamo did get that two goal lead, reducing the deficit to 8-7 on aggregate, when Tatu found the net from Maevski’s assist. Dinamo were one strike away from victory on away goals but the Russian side’s hopes were finally quashed as Neto lobbed the ball into the empty net from inside his own half to secure Boomerang’s second UEFA Futsal Cup following their triumph in 2003/04, making it four Spanish triumphs in the five-year history of the event.