Futsal finalists take centre stage

By Greg Demetriou in Ostrava

The 2005 UEFA European Futsal Championship gets under way this afternoon with Europe's top eight sides hoping to take the first step towards the trophy.

Fourth edition
The competition is now in its fourth edition with the three former winners among those participating over the next seven days in Ostrava, Czech Republic. Russia took the first UEFA title for national teams in 1999, Spain won two years later before Italy became the first host nation to go all the way when Vinicius Bacaro's fierce free-kick gave them a 1-0 victory against Ukraine and the 2003 crown.

First match
The defending champions have the honour of kicking things off this time around when they take on Portugal at 12.30CET at the CEZ Arena. That contest will be followed by first-time finalists Hungary going up against the might of world champions Spain at 14.30. These four sides are in Group B, with the top two progressing to meet the first and second-placed teams in Group A after the three matchdays today, tomorrow and Thursday.

Home expectation
Group A's opening two fixtures follow later this afternoon with the home fans getting their first look at their favourites when they face 2003 runners-up Ukraine at 16.30. The day's action concludes with Russia against the Netherlands at 18.30. Anyone wondering what all the fuss is about should heed Czech coach Michal Stríz's advertisement for this fast and exciting game. "It's an extremely incessant sport with more goals and more chances than football can offer," he said. "Everything is focused in a relatively small area, there are no dull moments."

Holders ready
All eight teams will want to make a flying start as they target a place in Friday's semi-finals. However, Italy will be particularly keen to impress, having just missed out in their bid to add the FIFA Futsal World Championship to their European crown last December, after a 2-1 final defeat by Spain.