Kairat show steel to beat Dina to final
Friday, April 24, 2015
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ISK Dina Moskva 4-7 Kairat Almaty (aet)
Kairat are through to their second final in three years after succumbing to one Dina comeback but withstanding another.
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• Kairat through to Sunday's final against Barcelona after edging out debutants Dina
• Kairat lead at half-time through Leo, but Esquerdinha levels early in second half
• Leo adds two late goals only for Dina to score twice in last minute
• Ex-Sporting man Divanei, Douglas, Lukaian and Leo decide game in exta time
• Kairat hope to emulate 2013 final victory; Dina in third-place play-off
Kairat Almay are through to their second UEFA Futsal Cup final in three years after Leo hit four goals to end the hopes of debutants ISK Dina Moskva in Lisbon.
Dina were led out by captain Dmitri Prudnikov – fit again after an ankle injury – and they had the first chance when Damir Khamadiyev's little flick was blocked by Higuita. The exuberant Kairat goalkeeper naturally ventured out as soon as he could, setting up Dinmukhambet Suleimenov to shoot at Sergei Zuev.
Midway through the first half, Kairat made the most of their possession as the ball was played back to Leo, who let fly from ten metres out. His shot hit Humberto and deflected past Zuev, and the Kazakh club nearly doubled their lead before the interval when Igor looped a shot over.
They pressed again at the start of the second half, Douglas lashing a shot onto the crossbar, but Dina promptly levelled as Prudnikov crossed for Esquerdinha to turn in. Zuev was then kept busy as Kairat had the better of the play – and their pressure told with little under five minutes to go, Leo smashing in a low, long-range drive from by the left touchline.
Leo made it three from inside his own half with Dina committed to attack, and suddenly the tie seemed over. Instead, Esquerdinha pulled one back in the final minute and, incredibly, there was still time for Prudnikov to equalise as flying goalkeeper with 15 seconds to go.
Could Kairat recover? Early in extra time they went back in front, former Sporting Clube de Portugal player Divanei volleying in to huge roars from the host team's fans gathering for their match with FC Barcelona.
At the start of the second period, Douglas turned in Alexandre Moraes's acrobatic cross, and Lukaian then dribbled the ball into an empty Dina net. Prudnikov scored again, but this time there was no recovery, Leo striking his fourth from inside the Kairat half in the last couple of seconds.