September 18 () –
The Spanish futsal team beat New Zealand (7-1) on Wednesday in the second round of the World Cup being played in Uzbekistan, a necessary step forward with a comeback and goals to take the lead in Group D.
Spain, two-time world champions and present in all tournaments like Argentina and Brazil, shook off the nerves and anxiety of the draw in their debut against Kazakhstan in the second half. However, Fede Vidal’s men, who have qualified for the last 16, forgave a bigger defeat, with goals being the key to first place, and a priori a better path in the tie, which the Kazakhs are also looking for.
In the first half, Spain came up against a wall in the form of their rival goalkeeper Antamanov, and on top of that they started behind on the scoreboard thanks to a goal from Twigg in the sixth minute. Mellado made it 1-1 shortly after but Fede Vidal’s men shot nearly 20 times on goal and went into the locker room without any more goals in their favour.
The two-time champions dominated and besieged the field, with Didac out of the goal giving them superiority and Raúl Campos, Catela and Adolfo ineffective against a New Zealand side that was well contained. However, the exercise in survival in Oceania collapsed 18 seconds after the whistle blew for the restart.
A shot from Raúl Gómez was deflected into the goal by Manickum and made it 2-1, which restored Spain’s confidence. Vidal’s men stepped on the accelerator and overtook the bottom team in the group, with a harvest of goals that also served to ensure they remain provisionally in the lead, tied with Kazakhstan. Despite Mellado missing a penalty, Catela and Gordillo scored the second and third in a minute.
New Zealand took the lead and sealed their fate against a hungry Spanish team, with a much fresher rotation, and pace to score a bag of goals that was scarce. Lizoain and two others from Catela completed the first victory at the Andijan Universal Sports Complex for a candidate for its third star. Spain and Kazakhstan will seek to win and score against Libya and New Zealand on Saturday to advance to the round of 16 as first team.
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