Spanish 3 - 8 Rustys (380081598)

17947 spectators had found their way to Isla de Leon, despite the heavy rain. José Seoane was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Silvèn Fleming and Fernando Tanoeiro. Spanish tactics involved an interesting 4-3-3 combination. Lineup: Jericha - Catasús, Ciuffa, Fiori, Vidal - Nikačević, Lucci, Tamayo - Moinier, Mainez, 關山 (Guanshan).

A 3-5-2 alignment was the formation of choice for Rustys. The following players took the field: Villaño - Veciño, Senoba, Martínez de Herrero - Delamare, Smirnov, Busing, Gonçalves Marques, Bengtsson - Vilaragut, Parrales.

Spanish showed off their creative tactics. After 7 minutes, Spanish raised their score by one when M. Tamayo's dangerous low cross was cleverly tucked in at the near post by E. Mainez. 1 - 0. O. Fiori was struggling to make the ball dance with his usual trickery and panache, and the opposing players had little trouble shutting him down in these muddy conditions. The visitors were awarded a penalty by the referee 22 minutes into the match, much to the anger of the home crowd. R. Smirnov took advantage of the situation and scored to make it 1 - 1. The opposing supporters gave the referee an earful when he only gave C. Vilaragut from Rustys a yellow card after a mistimed challenge from behind 33 minutes into the game. That was far too lenient! F. Lucci did not have a good day today, often losing his footing on the muddy pitch. Some good play on the left wing created an opportunity for the visitors 39 minutes into the match, and C. Veciño wasn't about to let it go by. He got past the defenders and fired a shot that the keeper just missed. 1 - 2 for the visitors. Given a free kick close to the byline, Rustys tried a move that loyal fans may recognise from training. A pass to the side pulled the defence out of position which let C. Veciño slip through on goal. He didn't have to break his stride, and slipped the ball past the keeper to make it 1 - 3, 40 minutes into the game. Spanish were awarded a penalty 41 minutes into the match and F. Lucci fired the ball into the net to make the score 2 - 3. Rustys's A. Busing was shown a yellow card for standing over the ball and blocking an opponent's quick free kick after 42 minutes. After 43 minutes, Rustys's J. Delamare burst through the central defence and let loose a cannonball of a shot, scoring for 2 - 4. 2 - 4 was the halftime score. Possession in this half belonged to Rustys, who controlled the ball 71 percent of the time.

A drive down the left side allowed C. Vilaragut to get in close and score another goal for Rustys after 72 minutes, taking the score to 2 - 5. The visitors' P. Parrales took advantage of a misunderstanding between the home side's goalie and centre backs 74 minutes into the match. 2 - 6 for Rustys. 78 minutes in, Spanish's E. Mainez received a yellow card for going into a challenge studs first. After 79 minutes, an incisive pass through the middle gave R. Senoba a chance to increase the lead for Rustys, and he did not disappoint. The score was then 2 - 7. At this point, it was obvious that the players of Rustys lowered the tempo and became more defensively oriented. A. Busing was having a great game - if anything the pouring rain seemed to be spurring him on! A. Bengtsson received a delicate pass through the home side's central defence after 82 minutes, and chipped it past the flailing keeper to score making it 2 - 8. The Rustys fans went wild, whilst the home fans started to think about leaving early. A. Gonçalves Marques was, after 84 minutes, almost able to extend the visitors' lead with a well placed diving header after the ball had looped into the centre, but the home side's keeper P. Jericha made the save. Spanish hit back on the counter attack 85 minutes into the game with a free kick. Initially it seemed wasted, hit wide towards the wing. But there was an idea to it - the ball was then crossed towards F. Moinier, who was waiting for it in the box. That's 3 - 8! Don't forget to thank the set pieces coach for that idea! Rustys had most of the ball, with 74 percent of possession.

Spanish's top performer was clearly E. Mainez. X. Vidal on the other hand, had a terrible day. Most important Rustys player was A. Busing. R. Senoba was a disappointment, however. The match ends 3 - 8.