Vamos FC create club futsal history for Indonesia
Ho Chi Minh City: A first-half hat-trick by Andri Kustiawan gave Indonesia’s Vamos FC their first-ever victory in the AFC Futsal Club Championship as they defeated Tajikistan’s Disi Invest 5-2 in their final Group B match on Tuesday.
Despite having already been eliminated, Vamos and Disi Invest were carrying the hopes and dreams of a nation, as victory would seal a historic continental club competition first for their respective countries.
With so much pride at stake, both sides made a cautious start but the Indonesians took an early lead when Iranian Ali Abedin and Sunny Rizky Suhendra combined telepathically to present Kustiawan with a simple finish in the second minute.
Disi Invest came agonisingly close to an equaliser when Bruno Santiago Jonatan produced the competition’s first acrobatic overhead-kick. Controlling the ball on his chest, the Brazilian then juggled it, before meeting it with precision in midair, only to see his attempt rock the crossbar.
Vamos FC then extended their lead in the eighth minute through Kustiawan, the forward displaying some nifty footwork to wriggle free from three defenders before finishing clinically past a hapless Zulfiqor Rahmonov.
The Tajikistan side replied immediately through Mehruboni Tillozoda, who displayed poacher-like instinct to react after Shohrukh Hamidov spearheaded a lighting quick counter-attack.
Just before the break, Kustiawan grabbed his hat-trick - his fifth goal of the competition - after pouncing quickly to latch onto Suhendra’s corner for a close finish.
Disi Invest were thrown a lifeline just seconds before the break, when Vamos were penalised for the sixth accumulated infringement. Tillozoda unleashed a powerful drive, beating custodian Muhamad Nazil Purnama, only to see it rattle the right post.
The restart saw both teams increase the tempo, with a series of end-to-end attacks, with the best chance falling to Kustiawan and Bambang Bayu Saptaji but the pair were denied by the quick reflexes of Rahmonov.
A defensive lapse by DISI Invest then gifted Ali Abedin an easy chance, the Iranian making no mistake with only the keeper to beat for Vamos’ fourth in the 31st minute.
The Tajikistan side then resorted to the power play strategy, but were instead punished by Ali Abedin once again, who guided a left-footed effort into an empty net. The power play finally reaped benefits for Disi Invest in the closing minutes, custodian Firuz Bekmurodov unleashing a powerful drive to narrow the deficit but the Indonesians were well beyond reach.
Reza Fallahzadeh (Vamos FC Head Coach)
“I am very happy with today’s performance and result. This victory is dedicated to my players and the people of Indonesia, who are crazy about football. I must also say I’m sorry we could not progress further in the competition but I hope they understand that we were in a very tough group. After a short rest, we will go back to training and hopefully, we will come back better next year.”
Afzali Hosein (Disi Invest Head Coach)
“This has been a big learning experience for my players. We needed to be exposed to this level of professionalism. There are many teams here that we can draw valuable lessons from, especially those that compete in professional local leagues. Club futsal in Tajikistan is still at the amateur level so we need to play more games outside the country in order to improve.”
Photos: AFC
Source: the-afc.com
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