Editorial of the issue  61
By José Escrich.
National Fusal Manager, Level III (RFEF). Manager of Levante U.D. - C.D. Dominicos.

We’ve finished the regular phase of the league, and every first division team is in the place they’ve deservedly earned. After so many games, the merits of the teams led them to their earned spot.
In the first place, we have Pozo from Murcia, a team that won the first place against all odds and will be benefited with playing in their field in the playoffs. F.C. Barcelona Alusport was not able to finish first, as it was its goal. We’re sure Barcelona didn’t expect to find such a solid Pozo from Murcia, a team that made very few mistakes in a year when several important players left the team. One thing we’re sure of is that these two teams will reach the league finals, as any other outcome would be a huge surprise.

The opponent of Pozo Murcia will be Umacom Zaragoza, a team that was able to squeeze into the fight for the championship. They couldn’t get the Spain Cup, but the team led by Santi Herrero is capable to rectify its mistakes and bring joy to its audience. They have nothing to lose and will enjoy their moment. F.C. Barcelona Alusport will meet Carnicer Torrejón, which proves year after year that a humble team can accomplish many things. They had a great season, and they will enjoy the playoffs as a reward for their great effort during the year.

The third place belonged to Inter Movistar. They arrived to the playoffs filled with uncertainty and with a sudden change of manager in the worst moment of the league. It seems like they’re more focused on the next season than in finishing this one successfully. They will meet Triman Navarra. The team from Navarra had another good season, and they make it seem easy, but this is a great accomplishment. They entered into the tournament and they’re now fighting for the title. If Inter doesn’t bring their “A” game, the team from Navarra will make it difficult for them.
The last playoff match will be Caja Segovia against Lobelle from Santiago. These two teams should have taken advantage of Inter’s troublesome year and fought for the 3rd place. But they struggled with their own problems and couldn’t reach that place. Nevertheless, they classified for the playoffs and they will fight to keep advancing. It seems like this will be one the most difficult playoffs we’ve seen.

We’ll see where each team is capable of going, and how difficult it could be for the bigger teams to face smaller rivals. In the lower end of the table, after the disappearance of Benicarló, there was one missing place for descending, and Reale Cartagena will finally be that team. Cartagena was a team who did its best not to descend, but their first half of the season was a burden that they couldn’t leave behind. Any team that has the kind of audience they have deserves to remain in the 1st Division, but they were not able to hang in there.

We hope for their return next year, and we also hope the rumors about their continuity are nothing but rumors. Marfil Santa Coloma was the team that was saved from descending. This is a historic team that we thought would stand its ground in the first half of the season, but they had to fight to remain in their category. Now they need to change their mindset and accept anything that the future brings to them and compete as hard as they can, because the future won’t be easy for them.

After a lot of suffering, Azkar Lugo and Ríos Renovables Rivera Navarra have been able to remain in this division, and they will be a part of the best futsal league in the world for another year.
Now it’s our turn to enjoy the playoffs and see what team will get the title. It’s likely that Pozo Murcia or F.C. Barcelona Alusport will prevail, but we’ll see where this long road will lead us.
Good luck to all of them!