Bayern Munich beat Al Ahly on Monday in Qatar to reach the Fifa Club World Cup final.
The German side, favourites to win the trophy, will now face off against South American heroes Tigres, the first Mexican (and Concacaf) team to ever make it to the tournament’s finals. The deciding match is set to take place on February 11.
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Robert Lewandowski was the man of the match on Monday against Egypt’s Al Ahly. Lewandowski was the sole scorer of the evening, netting two goals at the 17th minute and 85th minute.
Al Ahly finished the match at zero goals. They will now play against Brazilian side Palmeiras, also on Thursday, to decide third place.
If Bayern manage to win the trophy, they will make history. It would be the team’s sixth trophy in 12 months, which equals a record set by Barcelona in 2009. No other team in history has achieved this feat.
Pitso Mosimane, Al Ahly’s coach, reflected positively on his team’s defeat.
“We knew that facing Bayern Munich was not easy at all, and we played well against a big and strong team,” said Mosimane.
“My team was not afraid in front of Bayern Munich, who are the European champions, but at the same time we achieved a good level, especially in terms of defence.
“Bayern are number one in Europe. They didn’t allow us to have the ball for a long time. We rarely had the chance to play our game. Defensively, we were well organised. Now we are looking forward to the third-place match,” he added.
Mohamed Al Shenawy, Al Ahly's captain and star player, did his best to keep the score count low, as evidenced by the result, which could have been far more severe.
As for German boss Hansi Flick, playing with fans in the stands was an adjustment. Due to Covid-19, stadiums around the world stopped welcoming crowds.
“Playing in front of spectators is a bit of an adjustment,” he said. “Also for me as coach, because the players can’t hear me like they would in an empty stadium. But it was a good start and we all hope that we can have spectators back in Germany some day.”
Flick was also impressed with the stadium and expected good things for the World Cup 2022, to be hosted in Qatar.
“I just had a look at the pitch here in the stadium, the conditions are top-notch, the stadium is beautiful,” he said. “So, in that sense, you can tell that everything will be in great shape to host the World Cup 2022. And for us, that means we want to leave Qatar with the best result possible.”
