No surprises! Madrid already knows its opponent in the Intercontinental final

Published:14/12/2024 - 23:39h

Updated:14/12/2024 - 23:39h

Pachuca will be the rival of Real Madrid in the final of the Intercontinental Cup. The Mexicans relied on penalties to eliminate the African champion, Al Ahly (0-0, 6-5 p.)

Real Madrid already knows its opponent in the final of the Intercontinental Cup, a tournament that FIFA revived this year to fill the spot in the international calendar that, since 2005, was occupied by the Club World Cup. On Saturday, Pachuca from Mexico confirmed its favoritism against the African champion, Al Ahly, in a match with little football and excitement that, after 120 minutes, had to be decided by penalties (0-0, 6-5 p.).

Al Ahly had more prominence thanks to possession (53%) and the good work done by their midfield. The Mexicans, on the other hand, showed a much more conservative image compared to the match against Botafogo (0-3), where they took advantage of counterattacks to hurt a Brazilian team far from its best form after an exhausting end to the season.

After a nearly procedural extra time, the penalties started in the best way for the Africans. Rondón and Bastón missed the first two penalties for Pachuca, while Magdy and Rabia put Al Ahly ahead. However, the misses by Kahraba and Kamal on the fourth and fifth penalties, respectively, sent the shootout to sudden death. After two successful penalties from each side, Faber Gil scored for the Mexicans, while Khaled Abdelfattah missed the eighth and decisive penalty.

Madrid will face the CONCACAF champion for its fourth Intercontinental title

Thus, the 'tuzos' will be the rival of Real Madrid on Wednesday in Doha (19:00 h) in a final where the 'White House' will seek its fourth title in the tournament. The whites defeated Peñarol from Uruguay (1960), Vasco Da Gama from Brazil (1998), and Olimpia from Paraguay (2002), while in 1966 (Peñarol) and 2000 (Boca Juniors) they finished as runners-up.

Between 1960 and 2004, the tournament was organized exclusively by UEFA and CONMEBOL. From 1960 to 1979, the final was played over two legs. Since 1980, the final has been a single match. In total, the Champions champion has won 21 titles, compared to 22 successes by the Copa Libertadores champion. In addition to Madrid, Boca, Milan, Peñarol, and Nacional from Uruguay have also won the cup three times.