Győr tighten grip, Leotar hit ten
Monday, August 15, 2011
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Hungary's Győr ETO FC tightened their grip on Group E while there were mixed fortunes for the host teams as Groups A and C got under way in the UEFA Futsal Cup preliminary round.
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Hungary's Győri ETO FC tightened their grip on Group E on Monday while the action got under way in Groups A and C of the UEFA Futsal Cup preliminary round.
In the second set of matches in Vienna, Győr followed up Sunday's 9-0 defeat of FC Anzhi Tallinn by beating Helvécia Futsal London 6-1. Captain Ioan Al-Ioani struck a hat-trick, though the contest was closer than the scoreline suggests, the English side hitting the post three times before conceding twice in the last minute to end their hopes of going through.
Győr's final fixture is against Stella Rossa Wien, the host team who kept their hopes alive by beating Anzhi Tallinn 8-2, Herbert Gager netting a hat-trick. A Wien defeat would have secured Győr's progress but instead the Austrian outfit are now level on three points with Helvécia ahead of Wednesday's concluding games. If Helvécia beat Anzhi in the early game, Wien would need a five-goal win to deny Győr.
Whoever advances from Group A will enter Group 2 of the main round where they will be up against FC Barcelona, FK Nikars Riga and the winners of preliminary Group C, which got under way on Monday in Trebinje, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The host team KMF Leotar Trebinje made a spectacular start, putting ten goals past Falcao FC Stockholm. A brief power cut meant an impromptu five-minute pause at the start of the second half but there was no respite for the Swedish side, who were already four goals behind at the break. Nijaz Mulahmetović was the star performer for the hosts with a hat-trick.
The opening Group C match was a closer contest with Moldova's SC Tornado Chisinau scoring three times in the final four minutes against Andorra's FC Encamp to earn a 6-3 victory.
There was a false start from the home side in Group A, meanwhile, as Perth Saltires crashed to a 6-0 defeat against Montenegro's Bajo Pivljanin Pluzine. Finnish side FC Ilves Tampere had earlier opened the section by putting eight goals past SD Croatia Berlin, Timur Inapshba hitting four of them. They led just 2-1 at the break before stepping up a gear with a powerful second-half display led by Antti Teittinen. Games in Groups A and C continue on Tuesday.