Palma, a small futsal club, made history and managed to win the Champions League by defeating Sporting de Portugal on penalties and after a lesson in survival. A very beautiful page written by the Balearic team, which won the most important competition in Europe in its first participation and against a giant like the Portuguese team, finalist in six of the last seven editions. It was, without a doubt, a feat for Palma, led in an almost familiar way, a true guest in the select club of the greats of Europe in futsal. On penalties, Sporting decided to play with their substitute goalkeeper, Bernardo Paço. The Spaniards scored their five shots and achieved glory.
Great deeds require courageous acts, movements that go beyond the foreseeable and are capable of altering the usual. The alteration of the established order, in short, came in a very brilliant action by the Palma goalkeeper, the Brazilian Muller. The 14th minute was running and the final of the futsal Champions League moved in the midst of extreme equality. Until Muller, the goalkeeper, decided to pass the center of the field, enter the Sporting area, a great team, and give way to the veteran Rivillos in his fall, who hit him with his left leg with his soul to sneak the ball through the squad.
In the midst of an impressive atmosphere, in the Velòdrom Illes Balears, a beautiful story began to take shape, as typical of sport as it is the expression of the surprise with the victory of the applicant against the favorite. It wasn’t easy because immediately, after Rivillos’s goal, Sporting was a real steamroller. But Muller, now, no longer gave goal assists. He became a wall against the continuous shots from the players of the Portuguese team, where figures such as Merlim, Zicky or Varela stood out. Zicky, who played with a heavy bandage on his left leg, had the goal on his feet on the last play of the first half. Muller risked his face to clear with his face when the equalizing goal seemed immediate. It was a heroic match, in which every save, every ball cut and every save was celebrated as if it were a goal as the Portuguese became desperate.
Palma held on with great faith in the second half. Sporting’s dominance began to be suffocating. The Portuguese hit the posts with two balls and demonstrated their potential with a relentless attack on the Spanish goal. Palma tried a counterattack, but the weight of the clash was Portuguese. Even touched, Vicky scored a backheel goal to establish the tie on the scoreboard. It could be worst.
In the midst of a wave of Sporting, Solokov scored the second, although the Spaniards requested a review of the play and the referees, after seeing the action on the monitor, canceled the goal by the Russian from Sporting due to a grab. He had to hold on as possible in search, at least, of the extension. However, the one who had it was Palma. Chaguinha shot from distance to an empty goal and the ball hit the post. It was minute 37. Extra time came and then the glory of penalties.
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