On the opening day of Premier Futsal League, the second game sees the Goa 5s take on the Kolkata 5s. Goa and Kolkata can claim to be among the two traditional hotbeds of football fandom in India thus perhaps making it fitting that a Brazilian and Argentine are respectively leading the two sides.
With the Brazilian magician Ronaldinho leading the Goan franchise, the hope is that we get to see a lot of his trademark flicks and tricks, as he takes on the Kolkata franchise led by Argentine Hernan Crespo. Incidentally, both players have also played for AC Milan during their illustrious careers.
Livestream and kick-off time
The match between Goa and Kolkata will be the second match of the opening edition of the Premier Futsal League and will kick off on July 15 at 8.10 pm. Both teams are part of Group B. Watch live streaming of Goa 5s vs Kolkata 5s on SonyLiv. Follow live scores and commentary of the Premier Futsal League on Sportskeeda. The match will be telecast live on Sony Six, Sony ESPN and Sony AATH. It will be played at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Chennai.
Team News
Goa has bagged a prize asset in Brazil's Ronaldinho, who is their marquee player. If you've ever seen Ronaldinho play, the one word that comes to your mind is ‘magic’. The things that he could do with the ball at his feet were incredible. As more of a street footballer, the Brazilian great has admitted that a lot of those skills were honed playing futsal. It will be interesting to see if he can bring that dazzle again.
Goa also has Brazilian Vampeta, winner of the Copa America in 1999 and also someone who was part of the Selecao’s FIFA World Cup winning squad in 2002. Goa are being coached by Octavio Gomes De Oliveira Junior.
The Kolkata unit have in Hernan Crespo as their marquee player, a man who was an elite striker in the European club scene in the early 2000s. He'll be leading a Kolkata team which also has futsal specialists in Cidao and Pula. Cidao has been a regular in the UEFA Futsal Cup the last few years.
Another exciting watch in this team should be the freestyler, Dida, known for his bag of tricks. Kolkata will be coached by Spaniard Christian Roldan.
Prediction
Goa are amongst the stronger teams in the tourney and I think they'll emerge victorious in this tie.
Line-ups
Goa 5s Coach: Octavio Gomes De Oliveira Junior Marquee player: Ronaldinho International futsallers: Bebe (GK), Vampeta, Rafael, Georgievsky Freestyler: Adonias Indian futsallers: Michael Silva, Fredsan Marshall, Caitano, Vatsal (GK), Mohammed Ahtesham Ali, Praveendran
Kolkata 5s Coach: Christian Roldan Marquee player: Hernan Crespo International futsallers: Cidao (GK), Pula, Gabriel, Vander Carioca, Majdoub Freestyler: Dida Indian futsallers: Mohammedohamm Islam, Amit Pal (GK), Subrata Dey, Pradeep Shaw, Akshay Nair, Mayur Shellar
