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| Iran hold champs Spain; China lose |
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| Iran's Vahid Shamsaee (L) scores against Spain's goalkeeper Luis Amado on Wednesday. Iran held Spain 3-3. |
RIO DE JANEIRO/BRASILIA: Asian futsal champions Iran stunned Spain by holding the reigning two-time world champions to a 3-3 draw in their FIFA Futsal World Cup opener on Wednesday.
Another Asian team in the fray, China, however, lost to Argentina 5-0.
In Rio, Iran relied on a pattern of swift counter-attacks which saw Mohammad Taheri (4) and Ali Hassanzadeh (12) combine to open the scoring before AFC Futsal Player of the Year Vahid Shamsaee made it 3-0 before the break.
However, Spain struck back in the second half and goals from Torras (22, 36) and Borja (30) saw both sides share the spoils.
"We were really surprised at how warmly the Brazilian fans greeted us today. They got behind us from the start and really supported us," Iranian midfielder Ali Hassanzadeh said.
China had little chance against a rampant Argentina in Brasilia and succumbed to a heavy defeat. Marcelo Gimenez (6, 9, 17), Martin Amas (30) and Sebastian Corrazza (40) were the goal scorers for the winners.
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