Futsal: Fiorentino vs Folgore once again for the first trophy of the new season

The third futsal final of the 2023 calendar year once again has the Multieventi as its stage and Fiorentino and Folgore as its leading actors. The two teams that last season shared the trophies at stake – Folgore claimed the Super Cup, Fiorentino lifted the Futsal Cup and the Campionato Sammarinese – are ready to go into battle once more for the 2023 Super Cup, in front of a crowd that, especially in the very latest clashes between the Rossoblù and the Giallorossoneri – the cup and league finals – has grown used to intense, entertaining contests. Fiorentino resume from last year’s double and from the two historic draws achieved in the UEFA Futsal Champions League main round; Folgore from a new technical era under Claudio Zonzini. “For 80% of us, Europe is already a closed chapter,” says Fiorentino coach Matteo Michelotti. “Also because part of the squad has changed. We are training very well because we want to keep on winning, but we know we will be facing a team that will give at least 115% to beat us. We hope to extend our positive run. We are ready and fired up, just as we were on the eve of the European trip.” “Making my debut with a trophy on the line is something that fills me with pride,” says Claudio Zonzini. “I’ve picked up from the work done by my predecessor, Max Spada, and I’m fortunate to have a high‑quality squad which in the meantime has become deeper and stronger. We want to be good enough to compete for all the trophies available this season. We start by taking on this Super Cup final, but without setting ourselves specific targets. What matters to us is to live a season as protagonists, and I’m convinced we can do that. On the eve of this Super Cup final and this new season there is emotion, but also determination and strong motivation.” For Fiorentino captain Andrea Ceccoli, the idea of a Fiorentino side satisfied with last season’s results is “a problem that simply doesn’t exist. Knowing my team-mates, the hunger to play, to win, to perform well and to enjoy ourselves is always there. Tomorrow there will be a trophy at stake and we are determined to bring that home as well, to complete a sort of treble in the 2023 calendar year that began with victory in the Futsal Cup. We will, of course, give everything to achieve it.” The other captain, Massimiliano Bernardi, talks about the integration of the new arrivals, “which is progressing very well. We have had an excellent pre‑season, focusing from the very first sessions on this final and on this trophy to be won. We will give our all to overcome a strong side like Fiorentino, which has shown its worth both at home and beyond the borders of San Marino.” At the end of the press conference presenting the final, attention turned to the Multieventi, and more specifically to its playing surface and the atmosphere that the Serravalle arena can generate, as the most recent San Marino futsal finals have shown. “I haven’t played much on parquet,” Zonzini admits, “but it’s clear that it has a big impact on the style of play compared with artificial turf. Fiorentino have many National Team players, who may be more used to this surface. We will need to be very good at keeping our concentration high at all times, and maintaining the intensity of our game. We will have to be compact in every match situation, without ever losing focus or aggression. We want to defend this trophy at all costs.” For Michelotti, “the match will be decided by key episodes, like all finals. It’s true that we have several National Team players, but in my view that has little impact, because we are still talking about lads who are more used to training on artificial turf than on parquet. I hope that tomorrow’s big moments will go our way.” The two captains, instead, prefer to shift their gaze to the stands. According to Ceccoli, “the crowd can help or not, depending on the players’ personalities. Some feel the impact of the crowd and may be overwhelmed by it, but many others know how to close themselves off in a bubble of concentration and hardly notice it. We will need to be smart enough to draw on all the warmth that may come from the stands, while at the same time staying focused on our own game.” “Fortunately, we have had a very neutral crowd in the previous finals,” is the view of Massimiliano Bernardi, “and they were mainly there to enjoy the show. We tried to do our part in that. I must say, however, that this kind of atmosphere helps the players a lot; it fires them up. We hope that tomorrow we will be able to draw the same energy.” The 2023 Super Cup final will be played tomorrow at 21:00 at the Multieventi Sport Domus. Stewards will be on duty monitoring access to the stands, checking – in accordance with the venue regulations – that the limit of 400 spectators is respected. Once this threshold has been reached, any additional spectators will be directed to the upper floor to watch the match from behind the glass. Spectators are also reminded that, for the above‑mentioned fixtures, the regulations regarding prohibited items – for example glass bottles – will be in force. Anyone in possession of such items will not be allowed access to the stands. Admission to the two matches will be completely free of charge. The match will also be available live via streaming, with full commentary, on the platform Titani.TV. A simple registration, entirely free of charge, will be sufficient.

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