Brazilian giants Magnus Futsal on Wednesday beat countrymen Carlos Barbosa 4-3 in extra time to win the Futsal Intercontinental Cup. With both sides locked at 1-1 in regulation time, Magnus scored once in each of the halves of the extra time to win the tense final at Ali Bin Hamad Al Attiya Arena.
After intense battle for ball possession and swift tactical manoeuvres, Magnus drew first blood with two minutes two go. Legend Falcao smashed a powerful free kick into Barbosa’s wall but the loose ball was swiftly deflected into the net by Diego Rodrigo Fonseca de Menezes as the Brazilian celebrated their first strike late in the first half.
A minute later, Diego unleashed another powerful shot but the ball narrowly missed target. After an artistic run towards the goal, Barbosa’s Bruno Rafael Ramos Dias fired a bullet but his shot also missed the target.
In the 31st minute, Magnus’ Andre Grahl was slapped with a red‎ card for bringing down Barbosa’s goalie with a reckless infringement.
With one man down, Magnus immediately suffered as Barbosa’s Rodrigo Canabarro fired a bullet to score his team’s equaliser in the 31st minute. In extra time, Magnus’ Mithyue scored in the 41st minute followed by a strike by ‎Barbosa’s Grillo two minutes later.
Simi gave Magnus the lead in the 45th minute and then Neguinho added his team’s fourth goal in 46th minute. Murilo scored his team’s third goal in the dying seconds of the final.

Barcelona finish fourth
Meanwhile, Spanish giants FC Barcelona crushed Qatar’s Al Rayyan 6-1 to seal the third spot. In a game devoid of much interest after both sides lost their respective semi-finals on Tuesday, Lassa still managed to dominate play in both halfs to push Al Rayyan to fourth spot in the eight-team tournament.
After a few cagey moves, the Spanish giants got off the mark to sound a warning to the home side. Lassa opened the scoring through Aicardo in the 5th minute of the third-place play-off.
Ángel Velasco Marugán, known as Lin, doubled the lead for the visitors as Lassa jumped to a 2-0 card in the 14th minute. Enjoying a surge in momentum, Lassa moved ahead in style when Esteban. Cejudo Guerrero found the net by beating Rayyan goalie with a slick flick after a solo run in the 19th minute. Lin added to Rayyan woes by scoring Lassa’s fourth goal off a penalty kick in the 27th minute.
In the 31st minute, Rayyan pulled one back through Christian but Lassa did not relent from their attacking game and powered home a fifth goal through Wilde (35). Two minutes from time, Lassa fired their sixth goal through Aicardo. It was Lassa’s third win in four games. Only Magnus Futsal beat them in the tournament in the semi-finals on Tuesday. Qatar’s Rayyan posted two wins from four games.
Tournament Director Abdullah Alasai applauded his organisational team on a job well done at the end of the Futsal Intercontinental Cup. The six-day tournament proved to be a spectacular hit with fans and players alike.
“We are happy to see the response of the fans and the players who featured in the tournament,” Alasai said. “We have been applauded by FIFA and AFC for our performance in hosting the team. I promise you we will put out even better shows next year,” he said.
“We have many tricks up our sleeves. Fans will definitely enjoy the event more the next time we stage the event,” he said.
QFA has signed a five-year deal to stage the event with this week’s edition being the first. “We congratulate Magnus Futsal on winning the tournament. We also congratulate Qatar’s Al Rayyan on a job well done,” he said.
“Last but not least, I thank my team for their sincere efforts in bringing together a top-class futsal event. Everyone worked so hard to make this tournament a success. I applaud the various committees which worked tirelessly behind the scenes. This tournament created a positive image of Qatar in front of everyone associated with this event,” he said.