CLUB WORLD CUP
Club World Cup in Morocco: A clash of record-holders holds again after 22 years
Seven time Club World Cup holders, Real Madrid are set to face 10-time African champions, Al Ahly of Egypt this Wednesday in the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup in Rabat.
This is potentially an epic clash. But it is not the first encounter of the two teams. Before this match-up, both had met 22 years ago in 2001 and Al Ahly were winners by an odd goal.
It was at the ocassion of Al Ahly being proclaimed as the African ‘Club of the Century’. At the time, Real Madrid were the European champions.
But as Egypt’s Ahram puts it, 2001 was not one of the Real Madrid’s best years. They had endured their worst domestic league performance under Vicente del Bosque’s management, finishing only third in the league standings as well as losing the Copa del Rey final at the Bernabéu to unheralded Deportivo La Coruna.
In addition, they were narrowly knocked out by Bayern Munich in the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League, their signature tournament and the reason for their enormous fame and success.
However, they had begun a new policy of signing the world’s greatest players, one every year, under new president Florentino Perez with a goal of making Real Madrid the most fashionable club in the world. They were dubbed the Galacticos.
They had just augmented their strike force by signing French midfield star Zinedine Zidane for a then record $90 million four-year contract from Juventus on instalments. Zidane had just signed for Real, making his appearance in Cairo a pleasant surprise.
A flag-waving crowd of nearly 70,000 in Cairo Stadium saw Ahly weather an early storm as Claude Makelele went close for Real at the start of the match. Roberto Carlos let fly with one of his trademark cannon shots which goalkeeper Essam Al-Hadari did well to even see it.
Zidane whiffed at a clear opportunity in front of the goal.
Ahly came out for the second half determined to push back Real. They created several chances with Alaa Ibrahim and Khaled Bebo hitting the bar.
The goal came 10 minutes after the break after Bebo launched a counter attacking solo run before passing to Hossam Ghali who rounded Real goalkeeper Cesar before slipping the ball to newly signed Nigerian import Ibrahim Sunday who slotted into an empty net.
Real’s two superstars Zidane and Luis Figo failed to make an impression and were both substituted in the second half.
Zidane, Figo, Carlos, Raul, Makelele, Salgado, captain Fernando Hierro and all the other dream team members went down 1-0.
Manuel Jose of Portugal, who would go on to become Ahly’s winningest coach ever, marked his first victory with Ahly.
Real Madrid edged past Borussia Dortmund 3-2 in a dramatic Club World Cup quarter-final on Saturday to set up a last-four clash with Paris St Germain.
The Spanish giants stamped their authority on the match early at the MetLife Stadium, dominating possession and opening a two-goal lead thanks to strikes by Gonzalo and Fran Garcia in the 10th and 20th minutes.
Gonzalo, the 21-year-old forward continuing his breakout tournament, opened the scoring with a close-range volley from Arda Guler’s cross.
Ten minutes later, Garcia doubled Real’s lead, arriving at the far post to turn in Trent Alexander-Arnold’s low delivery after an incisive move down the right.
Jude Bellingham and Vinicius Jr. squandered chances to extend Real’s lead before halftime, while Aurelien Tchouameni came closest in the second half, rattling the crossbar with a curling effort from the edge of the box.
Despite the reduced intensity of play in New Jersey’s scorching heat, Real comfortably saw out the match, leaving Dortmund unable to mount a comeback until the game exploded into life in 10 minutes of mayhem in added time.
Substitute Maximilian Beier pounced on a rebound in the 93rd minute to pull one back for Dortmund, but a minute later Kylian Mbappe restored Real’s two-goal cushion with a stunning volley.
Dortmund refused to back down, however, and Serhou Guirassy’s pace saw him break through Real’s defence only to be pulled down in the box by Dean Huijsen.
The defender was shown a straight red card, ruling him out of the semi-final, and Guirassy coolly converted the resulting spot-kick to reduce the deficit to 3-2.
Dortmund came within inches of forcing extra time when in the ninth minute of added time Thibaut Courtois produced a sensational save to deny Marcel Sabitzer’s powerful strike.
“We were doing really well and the match looked under control but then in the last 10 minutes things got crazy,” Real manager Xabi Alonso told DAZN.
“We have lost a little bit our focus and intensity when we didn’t have the ball and luckily nothing else happened. But overall we have had good 80 minutes and the last 10 minutes to improve.”
Real Madrid now turn their attention to PSG, who defeated Bayern Munich 2-0 to book their place in the semi-finals. The winners of that clash will face Fluminense or Chelsea, who meet on Tuesday, in the final.
Reuters
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Paris St Germain snatched a 2-0 win over Bayern Munich on Saturday to reach the Club World Cup semi-finals, with Ousmane Dembele embodying the composure of Luis Enrique’s side as he sealed the victory when his team were down to nine men.
Dembele found the back of the net six minutes into added time after being superbly set up by Achraf Hakimi and the French forward also shone defensively by pressing relentlessly and initiating the move that led to his decisive goal.
“I’d give the Ballon d’Or to Mr Ousmane Dembele,” coach Luis Enrique said after PSG’s Champions League final win over Inter Milan. “The way he defended…only that can be worth the Ballon d’Or. This is how you lead a team.”
Dembele proved his coach right once again against Bayern.
Rested for the group stage after sustaining a thigh injury and only coming off the bench after halftime in the last 16 and in the quarter-final, Dembele brought an incredible energy to a team who had been dominated by Bayern.
“It’s an important period for us. We had a score to settle with Bayern after the 2020 (Champions League) final (won by Bayern 1-0) and after they beat us earlier this season,” captain Marquinhos said. “We want to win this competition.”
PSG went ahead through Desire Doue, his first goal in the tournament.
“I try to help the team by scoring, but also with my efforts, notably defensively,” Doue said.
PSG, seeking a quadruple of titles after winning the Champions League, French Cup and the Ligue 1 title, will face Borussia Dortmund or Real Madrid for a place in the final.
They will be without centre back Willian Pacho and defender Lucas Hernandez, who picked up straight red cards after Doue’s opening goal.
“The first one is a clear red card,” coach Luis Enrique said. “I’m not sure about the second one. We deserved the win but it was really really hard. Nothing special. Business as usual.”
-Reuters
An 83rd-minute Weverton own goal from a deflected Malo Gusto cross gave Chelsea a nervy 2-1 win over a spirited Palmeiras side in the Club World Cup quarter-finals at Lincoln Financial Field on Friday.
Cole Palmer also got on the scoresheet in the first half for Chelsea, who move on to face more Brazilian opposition in Fluminense in New York on Tuesday with a place in the final on the line.
Palmeiras roared back after halftime with teenage winger Estevao, who is soon to join Chelsea, equalising in the 53rd minute with a stunning strike from a tight angle.
“Tough game as we expected,” said Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca. “First half, I think we were a little bit better compared to the second half, we controlled the game much better.
“But then they scored and the game changed but at the end we scored and I think we deserved to win. Congratulations to the players, because they have been very good.”
Chelsea started the match well despite missing key defensive midfield duo Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, with 21-year-old Andrey Santos making his first start some two and a half years after joining the club.
They controlled possession and repeatedly threatened through Pedro Neto, who caused chaos for Palmeiras defence down the right flank.
Palmer struck in the 16th minute, receiving a pass from Trevoh Chalobah on the edge of the box and gliding past three defenders with ease before dispatching a precise left-footed strike into the bottom corner.
Despite their dominance, Chelsea squandered several opportunities, including Christopher Nkunku’s glaring miss in the 34th minute when he blasted over with only goalkeeper Weverton to beat.
Palmeiras, missing key defenders Joaquin Piquerez, Gustavo Gomez and Murilo, struggled to contain Chelsea’s fluid attack in the first half but emerged from the break with renewed energy.
They nearly equalised when Bruno Fuchs headed narrowly wide from a corner before Estevao worked his magic with an effort that should be a strong candidate for goal of the tournament so far.
The 18-year-old showcased his immense talent by cutting in from the right, gliding past Levi Colwill and smashing an unstoppable shot from a tight angle that flew over keeper Robert Sanchez and off the underside of the crossbar.
“Happy because we won, happy because he scored, so it’s a perfect night,” Maresca said of his new signing.
Just when Palmeiras looked at their most dangerous, though, Chelsea found the winner down the other end.
Gusto found space down the left and his attempted cross deflected off defender Fuchs and wrongfooted Weverton, the ball bouncing off the goalkeeper’s back and into the net to end Palmeiras dreams of an all-Brazilian semi-final.
-Reuters
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