Dinamo first into Futsal final

MFK Dinamo Moskva are through to the UEFA Futsal Cup final after a 5-2 home victory against Kairat Almaty secured an 8-2 win on aggregate.

Pole position
The Russian champions, runners-up last season, will play the winner of the other last-four tie between Boomerang Interviu and FC Shakhtar Donetsk, with the Spanish side leading 6-1 before the home leg in Madrid on Saturday night. Dinamo's own advantage was not as emphatic but their 3-0 success in Kazakhstan on 9 March had left them firmly in the driving seat at the Druzhba arena in Moscow.

Quick move
After a bright start by the hosts, Pelé opened the scoring following a quick passing move that left the Kazakh title-holders' defence helpless. However, Kairat levelled in the closing minutes of the first half, when Cacau played a one-two with Etienne, and then showed neat control before slotting the ball between the legs of Olexiy Popov.

Kelson second
Kairat took a time-out following their goal, but the result of a pep talk by Paulo Augusto was the opposite of what the Brazilian coach had hoped for. Gustavo left his goal to help the visitors surge forward only for a bad back-pass to hand the initiative to Dinamo, with Kelson lobbing the ball into an empty net.

Gustavo goal
In the second half, Dinamo continued where they left off as Tatu latched on to a pass from his own half, beat Gustavo with a stylish move and tapped in to make it 3-1. However, Gustavo made amends later, scoring from the centre circle to reduce the deficit. The Brazilian was centre of attention again 20 seconds later, as he denied Stanislav Larionov a golden opportunity by blocking his powerful shot into the top corner from an acute angle.

Professional foul
However, Gustavo turned from hero to villain again for Kairat, committing a professional foul in foiling a quick counterattack involving Larionov that ended in a shot by Konstantin Maevski. Kairat held out with three men for only three seconds before Maevski's free-kick was twice blocked and the ball fell to Olexiy Kudlay, who calmly finished to make it 4-2.

Missed penalty
Although Tatu missed a late penalty, Dinamo still got a fifth goal. Alexandre Rakhimov produced a superb pass into the path of the onrushing Cirilo, and the Brazilian showed great vision to lay off for Pavel Kobzar, who made no mistake from close range. Regardless of whether they play Boomerang or Shakhtar in the final, Dinamo have made a statement of intent in the UEFA Futsal Cup.