Kaku Scores Go-Ahead Goal and Al Ain Downs Wydad 2-1 at Club World Cup
Kaku scored early in the second half to lift Al Ain to a 2–1 victory over Wydad on Thursday in the final match of the Club World Cup for both clubs.
Both teams were already eliminated from contention for the tournament's knockout round. They went into the final group match without a win in Group G, which was dominated by Juventus and Manchester City. Manchester City defeated Juventus 5–2 simultaneously in Orlando, Florida, to claim the top spot in the group. Wydad coach Mohamed Amine Benhachem was at the game on crutches following a traffic accident with a team physician earlier in the week. No one involved in the accident was seriously injured, but the Moroccan coach was unable to attend the team's news conference the day before the match.
Wydad scored in the fourth minute. Cassius Mailula found himself unchallenged at the end of a cross by Mohamed Moufid and beat goalkeeper Rui Patrício at the near post. Mailula is currently on loan to Wydad from Toronto FC in Major League Soccer. Kodjo Laba converted a penalty just before halftime to pull Al Ain even.
Al Ain took the lead in the 50th minute when Paraguayan international Kaku finished into the upper right corner. Wydad center back Jamal Harkass was injured in the run-up to the goal and had to be taken off on a stretcher.
Key moment: Laba's successful penalty, which was confirmed by video review, broke a scoreless run in the tournament by the team from the United Arab Emirates. The Togolese forward was the UAE Pro League's top scorer this past season.
Takeaways: With both teams already eliminated, the outcome was mostly a matter of pride for the winner. Wydad's only previous goal in the tournament came from Thembinkosi Lorch against Juventus.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
an hour ago
- Arab News
Messi's PSG reunion, Real Madrid face Juventus in Club World Cup last 16
PHILADELPHIA: From Inter Miami's Lionel Messi facing former side Paris Saint-Germain to Real Madrid meeting Juventus and Chelsea taking on Benfica, AFP Sport looks ahead to the Club World Cup last 16. Saturday, June 28, in Philadelphia (1600 GMT) For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport Botafogo are the reigning Brazilian and South American champions and beat European champions PSG on the way to qualifying from their group at Atletico Madrid's expense. Sao Paulo side Palmeiras — featuring Brazil prodigy and future Chelsea winger Estevao Willian — won their group and are above Botafogo in the Brazilian league. However, Botafogo are unbeaten in their last five meetings with Palmeiras, including the two legs of a Copa Libertadores last-16 tie last year. Saturday, June 28, in Charlotte (2000 GMT) Enzo Maresca's Chelsea finished second in their group but avoided a strong Bayern Munich side by doing so, pitting them against Benfica. The Portuguese powerhouses, who boast veteran playmaker Angel Di Maria, edged the German giants in their final group game. Benfica will believe they can upset their inconsistent Premier League opposition and former Benfica midfielder Enzo Fernandez. New Chelsea striker Liam Delap is looking to continue adding to his tally after getting off the mark in the group stage. Sunday, June 29, in Atlanta (1600 GMT) Messi's Inter Miami were a surprise package in the group stage, beating Porto on their way to progressing to the last 16, but a late collapse against Palmeiras meant they finished second and must face the Argentine playmaker's former side PSG. This season PSG ended a long wait to win the Champions League for the first time and Luis Enrique's side are expected to vanquish their MLS opponents, but Botafogo beat them in the group stage to prove they are not untouchable. Sunday, June 29, in Miami (2000 GMT) Brazilian side Flamengo stunned Chelsea in the group phase to claim top spot but must overcome the might of Vincent Kompany's Bayern if they are to progress. With Harry Kane, Michael Olize and a Thomas Mueller looking to end his time at Bayern with a new trophy, the possession-hungry Bundesliga giants have as much firepower as anyone left in the tournament. Highly rated Flamengo coach Filipe Luis has his work cut out to keep Bayern at bay. Monday, June 30, in Charlotte (1900 GMT) Recent runners-up in the Champions League, Inter ground out wins over Urawa Red Diamonds and River Plate to finish top of their group and will now hope to avoid becoming the latest European team to stumble against Brazilian opposition. Fluminense, of Rio, held Borussia Dortmund en route to qualifying for this stage and will be full of motivation to claim a major scalp against Cristian Chivu's side. Monday, June 30, in Orlando (0100 Tuesday, July 1) City come into the knockout phase in ominous form after being the only team at the tournament to win all three group games. They have scored 11 times in their last two matches, with a 5-2 destruction of Juventus coming after they put six past Al Ain of the United Arab Emirates. A game against Al Hilal, the 2021 Asian champions, will give City no reason to be afraid, even if the Saudi club boast numerous former stars of leading European leagues, including Joao Cancelo. Tuesday, July 1, in Miami (1900) This is a clash between two traditional European titans who have met 21 times before. There have been two Champions League finals between the clubs, both won by Real. A 5-2 defeat for Juventus against Manchester City suggests they may find the going tough against Madrid. Real are adapting to life under a new coach in Xabi Alonso, who experimented with a three-man defense against Salzburg. He will hope to have Kylian Mbappe back after the Frenchman missed the group stage with illness. Tuesday, July 1, in Atlanta (0100 Wednesday, July 2) Dortmund coach Niko Kovac has not held back on expressing his feelings about having to play in extreme heat at the tournament so he will be happy the game against Mexican side Monterrey is at the covered and air-conditioned Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Despite their complaints Dortmund have grown into the tournament. They face former Real Madrid star Sergio Ramos and a Monterrey team that has impressed, notably a creditable draw against Inter Milan.
Asharq Al-Awsat
5 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Lionel Messi, Inter Miami Drive Club World Cup Ratings
Lionel Messi, arguably the most recognizable player in the Club World Cup, is steering viewership to his underdog team. Messi and his Inter Miami teammates are helping the expanded tournament draw US television ratings that are roughly comparable to those of the Premier League in the recently concluded season, Reuters reported. Club World Cup broadcasts in English on TNT Sports (TNT, TBS and truTV) were averaging 360,000 through Wednesday, per Sports Media Watch. Sports Business Journal noted that the highly popular Premier League drew 394,000 per match on USA Network in the 2024-25 season. Only a small number of Club World Cup are carried by TNT Sports, with all matches available on DAZN. Three of the top seven English-language telecasts on TNT Sports featured Inter Miami, led by 676,000 tuning in to see the Major League Soccer side draw 2-2 with Brazil's Palmeiras on Monday. The Miami matches attracted even larger viewership on Spanish-language broadcasts. Inter Miami drew 0-0 with Egypt's Al Ahly (371,000 viewers), then earned an upset 2-1 win over Portugal's Porto (349,000) before the tie with Palmeiras. Those results allowed Messi & Co. to finish second in Group A, setting up a Round of 16 matchup with Paris Saint-Germain that should be a rating bonanza. The Sunday contest in Atlanta pits Messi against the team he represented immediately before coming to Miami. And PSG are the newly crowned winners of the UEFA Champions League, the most prestigious continental club tournament. According to Sports Media Watch, the CONCACAF Gold Cup matchup on Sunday between the US men's national team and Haiti attracted an audience of 1.2 million viewers on Fox. The US won 2-1 to finish atop its group and set up a Sunday quarterfinal contest against Costa Rica in Minneapolis.
Arab News
7 hours ago
- Arab News
5 things we learned from Al-Hilal's FIFA Club World Cup win over CF Pachuca
NASHVILLE: Al-Hilal held their composure to defeat CF Pachuca of Mexico 2-0 in Nashville and book their place in the FIFA Club World Cup Round of 16. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport The hard-fought victory means coach Simone Inzaghi's side are the only team from Asia, Africa and Oceania to progress in the 32-team tournament. The Riyadh club will now meet Abu Dhabi-owned Manchester City in Orlando on Monday. Defense holds strong CF Pachuca started the match the better side, with former Newcastle United striker Salomon Rondon threatening to stretch the Al-Hilal defense early on. Hassan Al-Tambakti, the Saudi center-back who was a doubt after limping off against Red Bull Salzburg, put a confident display, stepping in twice in the opening 15 minutes when Rondon looked like he would test Yassine Bounou. Of the three games Al-Hilal have played in the US this month, this match in 'Music City' was — somewhat ironically given his nickname — Bono's quietest. Pachuca managed 12 shots, but only two hit the target; both were central and neither worried the Moroccan, even if he did seem to give Rondon a sniff of a follow-up in the first half. Pachuca, the reigning Concacaf champions, had scored in both their previous matches against Salzburg and Real Madrid, yet never came close here. Every great team is built on a solid defense and Inzaghi, now with two successive clean sheets, certainly seems to have organized his backline. Al-Dawsari does it again Dressed all in white in the land of the 'Man in Black' — country star Johnny Cash — the Blues soon found their rhythm. They settled into the match with the help of captain Salem Al-Dawsari, who raised the heart rate of right-back Eduardo Bauermann as well as the noise levels inside GEODIS Park during a busy first half. Intent on driving at his Brazilian full-back, Al-Dawsari showed speed and trickery every time he touched the ball, to the delight of the 14,147 fans. His moment came in the 22nd minute. Nasser Al-Dawsari noticed his captain running in behind and lofted the ball forwards. Salem still had much to do, but he is not a player who struggles in high-pressure moments. The Saudi flyer needed just one touch to compose himself, before lifting the ball high and over Pachuca goalkeeper Sebastian Jurado. As the ball hung in the air so did a silence, but Al-Dawsari knew it was going in and reeled off to celebrate his 27th goal of the season with the customary cartwheel and backflip. 'Al-Hilal has been working well since last season and we believe we are on the right track,' he told the media. 'Our organization does not change just because the coach changes or a player leaves or arrives. Al-Hilal is built by many, many people — that is the secret of our continuity. Tonight we will celebrate, but tomorrow the focus switches to the next match.' Misfiring Marcos Leonardo For 95 minutes it looked like Brazilian striker Marcos Leonardo would rue missed opportunities once again. The former Santos forward arrived at the Club World Cup having scored 26 times since joining Al-Hilal from Benfica last summer for $46.8m (€40m) and came close against both Madrid and Salzburg. Ultimately, he fumbled at the crucial moments — and it seemed more of the same against Pachuca, until the dying minutes. Lovely first-half play out from the back led to Malcom feeding the 22-year-old, but he had strayed offside. Later, Al-Hilal's No. 11 saw his header flash high and wide. As the match wore on, with nerves building and Pachuca pushing for an equalizer, Malcom picked his compatriot out again. He did well to chip it over the onrushing Jurado but failed to get enough power in the shot and the covering Bauermann cleared comfortably. With the match into the last of six additional minutes, however, Leonardo finally scored after collecting a long ball forward, rounding the Pachuca goalkeeper, and rolling it into an empty net. His own celebrations were muted, his team's ecstatic. The hope is this will give the Brazilian confidence going into the match against Manchester City, when chances will surely be slim. Mission accomplished, for now Inzaghi spoke of his 'great satisfaction' and revealed his target at the start of the month was to reach the Round of 16 — which his side has achieved. However, club president Fahad bin Nafel, speaking to Arab news, is now looking deeper into the expanded tournament. 'We are the only Arab club, the only Asian club, to progress to the Round of 16, so we are very proud of what we have achieved tonight,' he said. 'We are a great team with great players, great technical team and management. I am really supportive. That is our job — to fully support them, so they can push on and continue these great achievements and, inshallah, win the next game too.' Blue Wave in high spirits The Blue Wave swept through GEODIS Park on Thursday night. Nerves coursed through the concourse pre-match, while sheer joy was on display afterwards. Some Saudi fans paired cowboy hats with kanduras, while others draped the Kingdom's flag over their shoulders and danced in jubilation. The Saudi spectators may have been outnumbered by their Mexican opposites, but they were rarely outdone in terms of noise. As the Al-Hilal players headed down the tunnel after a short on-field celebration, a mass of blue fans gathered under the stands to savor the moment, wave their scarves and sing club songs. 'Bring on City! Bring on City,' they chanted. The Al-Hilal faithful, having traveled from Miami to Washington to Nashville, will now go to Orlando. They have proved both popular and respectful, posing for photos with other teams' fans and enjoying the chance to bring Saudi soccer culture to a wider audience. The victory against a team already eliminated allowed them to celebrate with no possibility of perceived antagonism. Their hope is that this victory, historic though it is, is not yet the highlight of their US road trip.
