Monterrey experienced a huge disappointment when they were eliminated in their debut at the Club World Cup, 1-0 in the second round match (quarterfinals) against the African champion, the Egyptian Al Ahly, this Saturday in Abu Dhabi.
Mohamed Hany signed the only goal of the game in the 53rd minute, taking advantage of a rebound from Argentine goalkeeper Esteban Andrada.
That action was enough for the historic team from Cairo, which holds the records for the titles of champions of Africa (10) and Egypt (42), to meet in the semifinal on Tuesday with the Brazilian Palmeiras, which starts directly in the penultimate round in quality of representative of South America.
After the emotional blow received by the goal of the North Africans, Monterrey tried to react, without success.
It was close moments later, with a header from Maxi Meza (55), but in the last half hour Al Ahly’s nerves and defensive order made the equalizer impossible.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxfeoX7LxLQ
In the first half the forces were level but Monterrey also had good chances to get ahead: Maxi Meza brushed the goal in the 15th minute and Rogelio Funes Mori sent it wide in the 20th minute.
Despite the losses, especially due to the African Cup, Al Ahly was saved from the Mexican harassment and made the most of Mohamed Hany’s goal, leaving Javier Aguirre’s men sunk emotionally.
“It hurts us a lot not to have been able to reach our goal. We acknowledge and appreciate the invaluable support of our fans at the FIFA Club World Cup,” Monterrey wrote in a message posted on Twitter.
“We are sure that we will return in life and on the court. Let’s continue to grow together, fans and team, and let’s write new indelible moments in our history that reaffirm our pride in belonging to Monterrey”, he added.
Mexico will therefore continue to have the world club title as a pending issue, a goal that eludes them year after year.
In the previous edition, a year ago in Qatar, Tigres had made history by becoming the first Mexican team to reach a Club World Cup final, losing there 1-0 against German Bayern Munich.
bitter precedent
Monterrey ends its fifth Club World Cup with a failure and falls for the third time in its debut in the quarterfinals, as happened in the 2011 and 2013 editions. In the other two it did manage to go to the semifinals, in 2012 and 2017, and He finished the tournament in third position.
The ‘Rayados’ will play on Tuesday in the match for fifth place against the loser of the other quarter-final match, which faces Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal with Emirati Al Jazeera on Sunday.
Al Ahly was third in two editions of the Club World Cup, in 2006 and 2021.
His objective in this tournament is to emulate the Egyptian team, which on Sunday will play against Senegal in the final of the African Cup of Nations (CAN) in Cameroon.
Along with Palmeiras, the other great favorite for the title in this Club World Cup is English Chelsea, who will face the winner of Al Hilal-Al Jazira in the second semi-final on Wednesday.
The London team played this Saturday in the round of 32 of the FA Cup and won there 2-1 in extra time against Plymouth Argyle, from the third division.
Coach Thomas Tuchel, positive for covid-19 and in doubt for the tournament in Abu Dhabi, was not on the bench for the ‘Blues’. (D)
Source: Eluniverso
Ricardo is a renowned author and journalist, known for his exceptional writing on top-news stories. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he is known for his ability to deliver breaking news and insightful analysis on the most pressing issues of the day.
