By Agencies Kenan Yildiz
MIAMI: Spanish giants Real Madrid edged Juventus 1-0 at the Club World Cup on Tuesday, advancing to the quarter-finals where they鈥檒l meet Borussia Dortmund, who defeated Mexican side Monterrey.Real took the lead thanks to a second-half strike from academy graduate Gonzalo Garcia as Kylian Mbappe made his tournament debut.
Garcia, deputising for Mbappe after the France forward missed the group stage due to gastroenteritis, found the back of the net early in the second half.
Mbappe made his much-anticipated appearance as a second-half substitute, delighting the partisan crowd who packed Hard Rock Stadium to near capacity in a demonstration of the Spanish giants considerable global appeal.
Juventus had early chances but gradually faded under the relentless pressing of Xabi Alonso鈥檚 side and had goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio to thank for sparing them a heavier defeat.
After a lacklustre group phase, Real, playing in Alonso鈥檚 favoured 3-4-3, showed glimpses of what they could be capable of under their new coach.
Juve striker Randal Kolo Muani, set up by Kenan Yildiz鈥檚 incisive pass that split the Real defence, attempted an audacious chip in the seventh minute but sent the ball narrowly over Thibaut Courtois鈥檚 crossbar.
Moments later, Yildiz tried his luck from long range but saw his effort fly wide.
Real grew into the match and nearly capitalised on a defensive lapse by Juventus.
Jude Bellingham, aiming a sharp angled strike, was denied by Di Gregorio, whose quick reactions kept the Italian side level.
Di Gregorio was called into action again shortly before halftime, making an impressive save to parry away a thunderous long-range shot from Federico Valverde.
Juventus, under pressure late in the first half, must have been satisfied to reach the interval with the scoreline still goalless.
Twice early in the second half Di Gregorio denied Bellingham and Dean Huijsen, but he was helpless when Garcia headed home from Trent Alexander Arnold鈥檚 pin-point cross in the 54th minute for his third goal in the tournament.
The Italian keeper sustained some hope for Juventus, his reaction save preventing Valverde from scoring with a bicycle kick.
鈥楳bappe, Mbappe!鈥 the crowd chanted as the France forward, after warming up, ran towards the bench to get ready to replace Garcia midway through the second half.
The 26-year-old was often in a good position but he was not properly served by his team-mates and his start in the 32-team tournament eventually looked like a glorified workout.
Xabi was pleased with his team鈥檚 performance, including that of Gonzalo 鈥 who he had compared to former Real great Raul 鈥 but also suggested that Mbappe might be ready for a bigger contribution in the next game.
鈥淲e will keep watching him… I think he will be much better for the quarters,鈥 Alonso said.
Alonso added that he was satisfied to see Real produce the necessary grit to grind out the result in the second half.
鈥淲e had to be patient, we had to mature into the game,鈥 said the coach.
鈥淲ith the players and myself, you know you have to grit your teeth and do what you have to do. And in the end, we had to hold on a bit, and I鈥檓 happy about that too.鈥
Juve boss Tudor said his team became exhausted as the game developed in the temperatures that reached 30 degrees Celsius with a humidity of 70% 鈥 a punishing combination for the players.
鈥淚n the end there were 10 of them asking to be substituted. Obviously you can鈥檛 do that but there was an incredible tiredness,鈥 he said, offering his reasons.
鈥淭here is the tension of the game which burns energy but then there is the heat and humidity,鈥 explained Tudor, also noting they were at the end of a long season.
RAMOS DENIED
In Atalanta, Serhou Guirassy struck twice for Dortmund as they scraped past Sergio Ramos鈥檚 side 2-1 in a tight last-16 clash and denied the former Real skipper a match-up against his former team.
Clinical finishes from Guinean international Guirassy in the 14th and 24th minutes put Dortmund on top at the break but German Berterame hit back for Monterrey in the 48th minute and the Mexican club pressed for an equaliser until the final whistle.
The Dortmund defence held firm, however, setting them up to play Real who beat them in the 2024 Champions League final.
鈥淚t was difficult. They鈥檙e a good team with experienced players,鈥 player-of-the-match Guirassy. 鈥淚 think we had a very good first half. Second half was a bit harder, but the mindset was tough and we won so we鈥檙e all happy tonight.鈥
There will be no reunion for the Bellingham family, however, with a yellow card shown to Dortmund鈥檚 Jobe in the 28th minute ruling him out of the clash with big brother Jude鈥檚 Real.
鈥淗e鈥檚 young. His brother is also young, so I鈥檓 convinced they will face each other,鈥 Dortmund manager Niko Kovac said. 鈥淢aybe next season in the Champions League, and then the future. The future is for them.鈥
After grinding through several games in the blazing afternoon sun during the group stage, Dortmund were grateful to be at the air-conditioned Mercedes-Benz Stadium and played at a faster pace.
Karim Adeyemi set up both of Guirassy鈥檚 goals as the Guinea international reached 37 for the season across all competitions.
Monterrey hit back in the second half, but after Berterame headed home to reduce the gap, goalkeeper Gregor Kobel made several good saves to keep them at bay.
Ramos, sent up front for the final stages, put a header agonisingly wide in stoppage time as he tried to deliver on his penchant for late, decisive moments, like in Real鈥檚 2014 Champions League final triumph.
鈥淭he crowd and our fans and the people who understand about football, they saw that the team gave everything,鈥 Ramos told DAZN, proud of his side鈥檚 efforts.
Published in Dawn, July 3rd, 2025