PREVIEW: Futsal Whites ready to tackle high-ranking Spain in Uzbekistan

Futsal White Hamish Grey says his side expects a “tough game” when they face highly-rated Spain in their second group game at the FIFA Futsal Men’s World Cup.

And he’s speaking from the experience of playing his club football for Zambú CFS Pinatar in Spain.

READ MORE: Futsal White Hamish Grey lands contract with Spanish club >>>>

“I think they’ll have some good ideas at how to disorganize our defence and I think they’ll try and move us around a bit,” Grey said before the match to be played at the Andijan Universal Sports Complex, in Uzbekistan.

The game starts at 3am (NZT) on Thursday September 19.

Main photo: Hamish Grey … ‘we need to be pretty tight defensively.’

The Spanish team are rated #3 in the FIFA men’s futsal world rankings while New Zealand are #19.

Spain drew 1-1 with Kazakhstan in their tournament opener, while the Futsal Whites lost 3-1 to Libya.

READ MORE: Futsal Whites lose 3-1 to Libya in opening game at FIFA Futsal Men’s World Cup >>>>

“As we saw against Kazaksan, they (Spain) have got some real good players on the ball who are pretty happy to take their player on one-on-one so I think we need to be pretty tight defensively and we’ll go from there,” Grey said.

“We know the level that Spain are at — top three in the world — so, yeah, a good team, but I think we’re gonna go out there to try and win. That’s all we can (do); that’s what we’re gonna do.”

Acknowledgement

We thank NZ Football for providing this interview.

Fixtures

Games to be played on Thursday September 19, 2024 (NZT)

Libya v Kazakhstan
Andijan Universal Sports Complex, Andijan, Uzbekistan, 12.30am (NZT)

New Zealand v Spain
Andijan Universal Sports Complex, Andijan, Uzbekistan, 3am (NZT)

Game to be played on Sunday September 22, 2024

New Zealand v Kazakhstan
Humo Arena, Tashkent, Uzbekistan, 12.30am (NZT)

Libya v Spain
Andijan Universal Sports Complex, Andijan, Uzbekistan, 12.30am (NZT)

This story was first published on September 18, 2024.

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