Same again for Futsal final

There is a certain sense of déjà vu when it comes to this year's UEFA Futsal Cup final.

First final
On 3 March 2002 in Lisbon, Playas de Castellón and Action 21 Charleroi met in the deciding game of the inaugural competition. The Spanish side won 5-1 on that occasion, thanks to goals from Lorente, Javi Rodríguez (2), Joan and Alemão. The two teams have now won through to contest the final again, with the Spanish side firm favourites to retain the title.

Two-legged affair
Last year's final was the culmination of a week-long tournament involving the eight best sides in Europe. This time around, the format has changed with two qualifying rounds used to produce a two-legged final. The first leg is in Charleroi from 20.30CET on Wednesday night, with the return to follow in Castellón on Saturday 3 May.

Key man out
The first contest will be held at the Stade de la Garenne, and a sell-out crowd is expected. Charleroi are without Pedro Medina, who is suspended for both legs after being banned following the second qualifying round match against Interviú Boomerang. The Spanish side actually qualified for the final only to subsequently lose their place to Charleroi because they fielded an ineligible player in a group match.

Brazilian brilliance
One piece of good news for coach Ricardo Menezes da Silva, whose team are top of the Belgian league after 24 wins out of 24, is that Portuguese forward Leonardo Soares appears to have returned to fitness. The coach will also put his faith in a combination of Brazilian brilliance from the likes of Andre De Oliveira Vanderlei and Lúcio Rosa and the efforts of Belgian internationals such as Mohamed Boukamir and Mustafa Toukouki.

Chance to shine
Castellón who breezed through to the final will be missing the services of the suspended Javi Rodríguez, the two-goal hero in last year's final, meaning a chance for the talented Diego García. Although only 19, he gained experience during the earlier rounds and will get a chance to prove his worth on European Futsal's biggest club stage.

Cup defeat
Among the others expected to star for Faustino Pérez’s team are Spanish players Isco, Josema, and the evergreen Javi Sánchez while Castellón also have their own touch of Brazilian magic with players like Cupim, Alemão and Vander Carioca. Pérez will hope his team are able to recover from losing in the Spanish Cup semi-finals on Saturday, when they went down 4-3 against Boomerang. In the Spanish league, third-placed Castellón trail Boomerang by seven points.