Azerbaijani futsal player: "We became victims of referees' sympathy"

"We wanted to win today. We started the game well and had lots of goal moments," Azerbaijan's futsal player Bolinha told the official website of the federation after being defeated by Croatia 0:2 within the elite round of the World Cup.

The striker will miss the match against Russia today because he received a yellow card in the first-round game. He described the episode very light: "I didn't touch the goalkeeper intentionally. In my opinion, I didn't deserve a yellow card. We were playing against the host team and became victims of referees' sympathy. Although I don't play, I wish success to my teammates."

According to Bolinha, the match against Russia will be difficult: "We have a chance, but let's admit that the Russian national team is also very strong."

The Azerbaijani team that lost to Croatia 0: 2 in their first match will face the Russian team tonight. The game begins at 20:00 Baku time.