barcelona 4 - 7 Avalanche (392870638)

The weather was pretty good, and a crowd of 36185 had shown up at Tjenaarena for the match. Henny Mazurek was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Jesús Alberto Pou Gimenez and Laurits Dideriksen. barcelona started off with a 3-5-2 lineup. The following players had been chosen: Miklaučič - Walchshauser, Santana, Benigni - Fedorov, Pedersen, Yapura, Ribeiro, Roccatagliata - Nakano, Grafiotis.

Avalanche tactics involved an interesting 5-2-3 combination. The following players took the field: Drakhall - Jakovljević, Hafer, Deville, Maimon, Mikiš - Kindt, Singh - Papadosifakis, Flammar, Tormar.

Using their counter-attacking abilities was the strategy of choice for Avalanche. The counterattacks of Avalanche were deadly and 14 minutes into the game, Y. Papadosifakis received a nice pass from the right flank, making it 0 - 1. Avalanche's B. Flammar left the field after 15 minutes because of a nasty blow to the shin. His replacement was M. Bērzājs. J. Deville was the new captain of Avalanche - handed the armband by the departing player. After 26 minutes of play, F. Yapura equalised for barcelona after an elegant attack from the right. The goal to make it 1 - 2 was scored by V. Kindt after 31 minutes, following an opportunistic counterattack down the middle by Avalanche. 1 - 2 was the score after the first half. barcelona claimed to have seen most of the ball, and the statistics agreed with them - possession being 88 percent.

F. Yapura showed the skills that make him a real crowd pleaser as he, after 48 minutes, wove through the guests' entire central defence and put the 2 - 2 equaliser away. Coming in from the right, Avalanche had a good opportunity to convert on a counterattack after 54 minutes, but N. Jakovljević's attempt to finish was easily stopped. Having been awarded a free kick in an awkward position after 70 minutes, barcelona did not go for a shot but instead fired the ball hard into the 6 yard box. After a brief tussle with his marker, P. Roccatagliata was able to power the ball past the keeper to make the score 3 - 2. A. Mikiš was first to reach a ball launched long through the center from Avalanche's defence 73 minutes into the game. He managed to keep his cool and beat the goalkeeper to make the score 3 - 3. Avalanche's G. Maimon was shown a yellow card for standing over the ball and blocking an opponent's quick free kick after 80 minutes. 82 minutes into the game, J. Deville had to leave the pitch due to a knee injury. In came A. Cañaveral. N. Jakovljević became the new Avalanche captain. barcelona enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 88 percent of possession.

As neither team had managed to win, extra time was called. After 104 minutes, the defensive line of Avalanche created a counterattack through the middle that gave V. Hafer a good look at the goal, but his shot glanced harmlessly off the crossbar. J. Apotheker was called on to replace Avalanche's Y. Papadosifakis after 106 minutes following a nasty collision. barcelona had a chance to take the lead after Z. Nakano's dazzling drive up the left, but the opportunity fizzled out as his shot went just over the bar after 107 minutes. After extra time, the game was still tied and a penalty shoot-out ensued.

barcelona's G. Walchshauser cockily booted the ball with a short-and-fast instep. The penalty, going just wide of the mark, didn't produce a goal. Avalanche's A. Mikiš coolly put the ball past M. Miklaučič. 3 - 4. barcelona's V. Ribeiro looked like he knew exactly where he wanted to put the ball, but unfortunately his shot went wide of the left hand post. Still 3 - 4. Avalanche's V. Hafer showed he has nerves of steel when it comes to penalties, easily changing the score to 3 - 5. barcelona's I. Grafiotis didn't hesitate but P. Drakhall managed the save, resulting in an unchanged 3 - 5 score. Avalanche's L. Tormar kept his cool as he faced down M. Miklaučič. His composure paid off as he scored easily for 3 - 6. barcelona's G. Benigni was relaxed as he smoothly put the ball in the net. 4 - 6! Avalanche's G. Maimon didn't look like he was confident as he stepped up, and produced a badly struck penalty - right into the arms of M. Miklaučič. The score remained 4 - 6. barcelona's Z. Nakano drove the ball hard to the corner but couldn't get it past the outstretched arm of P. Drakhall. The score remains 4 - 6. Avalanche's P. Drakhall made no mistake. M. Miklaučič didn't have a chance. 4 - 7. Most important barcelona player was F. Yapura. M. Miklaučič turned in a dismal performance, however. L. Tormar performed admirably for Avalanche. However, J. Apotheker made a disastrous appearance. The match ends 4 - 7.