On an epic night at the Arena Riga with several dozen Dracs in the stands, Barça managed to turn around a match that began by losing to Benfica 3-0 to end up winning in extra time with a goal from Adolfo from a pass from Dyego, the great protagonist of the comeback.
BEN
PUB
BENFICA, 4
(3+1+0+0): André Sousa (p.), Rómulo, Robinho, Chishkala (1), Vinicius Rocha (1) -five starters-, Tayebi (1, p.), Afonso Jesus (1), Arthur, Bruno Cintra, Nilson Miguel, Rafael Henmi and Jacaré.
BARCA, 5
(0+4+0+1): Dídac (l.), André Coelho, Dyego (2), Adolfo (1), Pito -first five-, Carlos Ortiz, Sergio Lozano, Marcenio, Ferrao (1), Matheus ( 1) and Bernat Povill.
REFEREES
Nicola Manzione and Chiara Perona (Italy). They showed a yellow card to Chishkala (7:34), Tayebi (25:47) and Vinicius Rocha (34:25) from Benfica; and Dídac (0:41), Ferrao (18:27), Sergio Lozano (22:37), André Coelho (24:47) and Pito (28:48), from Barça.
GOALS
1-0, Tayebi, from a penalty (0:41); 2-0, Vinicius Richa (8:47); 3-0, Afonso Jesus (16:38); 3-1, Matheus (20:21); 3-2, Ferrao (30:23); 3-3, Dyego (34:08); 3-4, Dyego (37:30); 4-4, Chishkala (37:56); 4-5, Adolfo (49:42).
INCIDENTS
Second semifinal of the Final Four of the men’s futsal Champions League played in front of some 3,000 spectators at the Arena Riga (Latvia).
Therefore, Jesus Velasco’s team will face champion Sporting de Portugal in the final this Sunday, who easily beat the Gallic ACCS in the first semi-final 2-6. On the other hand, the Lisbon team is condemned to dispute the bitter duel for third place against Ricardinho’s team.
The game could not have started worse for a Barça team that started strangely coldwhich together with the performance of two lousy referees like the Italians Manzione and Perona (a public danger the braid) led to the 0-1.
After not seeing a very clear foul on Pito, Dídac committed a debatable penalty for pushing Vinicius Rocha that was converted by the Iranian Hossein Tayebi at 1-0 when only 41 seconds had elapsed. It was the third Portuguese arrival.
The current runner-up reacted well with a missile from André Coelho to the crossbar in the 2′ minute and with a shot from Adolfo in the next minute that deflected a sensational André Sousa. Pulpis was right making him play instead of the Brazilian Diego Roncaglio, the usual starter. The referees were not so keen to see some possible hands outside the area by the Portuguese goalkeeper in the 4th minute, by the way.
Adolfo was about to score the tie
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Former Barcelona player Rómulo gave the warning in the 8th minute with a shot that skimmed the post and shortly after came the second goal for the ‘Aguilas’. Benfica was looking for the back of the Barça defenders and found it with a long pass to Vinicius Rocha to score the 2-0.
Barça improved a lot and deserved to grow by closing the gap, but André Sousa was full of shots from Adolfo, Dyego and Ferrao. There the bad luck was fattened with the azulgranas, since alone in front of the goal the Brazilian Marcenio he shot against the post in the 16th minute and in the ensuing against Afonso Jesus he made it 3-0 taking advantage of Dídac’s rejection.
The Portuguese endured the last six minutes with five fouls and were clearly ahead at halftime. And that in the final stretch Vinicius Roicha was ahead of Dídac in a long delivery and his header went near the post. Very bad Barça behind. The final was really far.
Carlos Ortiz, in an action of the semifinal
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Barça came out determined to burn their ships and 21 seconds after the restart Matheus scored the 3-1 with the collaboration of André Sousa, who deflected a great shot by Pito to the crossbar in the 23rd minute. It was the third auction to the wood of those of the renewed Jesús Velasco.
Benfica tried to curb that superiority of a jinxed Barça team. Ferrao’s attempt almost over the line ended in a ‘ghost goal’ (The referees were right) and Marcenio crashed a new shot (from a distance this time) on the crossbar, although the Russian genius Ivan Chishkala did the same in a Vaseline half.
Dídac also crashed into the crossbar and the Catalans were beginning to run out of time with four fouls for each team and only 10 minutes to go when he appeared Ferrao to get his top hat and sign the 3-2 with a spectacular high heel to a pass from Ortiz. And in the next action, fifth benfiquista foul.
A ‘touched’ Matheus was very useful for Barça
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Finally, Barça equalized thanks to a sensational action by Dyego in the 34th minute and was able to complete the comeback in the 35th minute after a foul on Pito just after a galactic save by Dídac against Rómulo. Nevertheless, Sergio Lozano sent the double penalty to the post when André Sousa had gone ahead half meter
It was the moment of the one who always tries, the one who never gives up and the one who empties himself every time he puts on the Barca jacket. Dyego evaded Cintra’s defense with two feints and made it 3-4 that turned the scoreboard two and a half minutes from the end. Too bad that the team continues to make waters in the defense in inferiority and Chishkala equalized with a missile that surpassed Dídac. There was still time for Ferrao to shoot the post again and there were already seven woods. Also with five fouls and the way things had gone, the extension was a lesser evil.
In the first part of extra time, Dídac saved Barça with a shot from Rómulo and Dyego did it by getting ahead of Cintra when he was about to score. And in the second the referees forgave Barça the sixth foul (at the hands of Ferrao) and Adolfo finished off a pass from Ferrao just before scoring the final 4-5 to a pass from Chapecó with 18 seconds to go. And now for the ‘rematch’!