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Jude Bellingham and Arda Güler scored late in the first half to help 10-man Real Madrid to a 3-1 victory over Pachuca in a Group H clash played amid sweltering conditions on Sunday in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Federico Valverde’s sliding volley in the 70th minute sealed Xabi Alonso’s first victory as Madrid manager. The result puts his side’s Club World Cup campaign back on track after a dramatic 1-1 draw against Al-Hilal in Wednesday’s opener, and despite Sunday’s early dismissal of defender Raúl Asencio.
Real Madrid can clinch a place in the last 16 with a win or draw against Salzburg on Thursday in Philadelphia. Al-Hilal play Salzburg later on Sunday in Washington.
Thibaut Courtois made 10 saves for the victors, though he could do little on Elías Montiel’s 80th-minute deflected effort that provided Pachuca consolation.
The Mexican side were eliminated despite leading their Spanish foes 25-8 in shots overall and 11-3 in efforts on target. But as in Pachuca’s 2-1 Wednesday loss to Salzburg, it was their opponents who had more quality in their attacks.
Referee Ramon Abatti Abel showed no hesitation in dismissing Asencio in the seventh minute for denying an obvious goal-scoring opportunity after the Madrid defender hauled down Salomón Rondón just beyond the penalty area.
But after absorbing pressure for most of the opening half-hour, the Spaniards raced out to a 2-0 lead in the half’s final 15 minutes.
In the 35th, Gonzalo García’s quick flick-on freed Fran García down the left. The latter then picked out the late run of Bellingham, who collected a square ball and slid his low finish past Carlos Moreno from 15 yards.
In the 43rd minute, it was Güler providing the finishing touch from inside the area on another flowing Madrid move, this time with Gonzalo García providing the final square pass after Trent Alexander-Arnold’s first-touch cross.
Pachuca continued to apply pressure after the break, with Courtois forced to push Bryan González’s early-second half effort over the bar and John Kennedy’s 61st-minute strike from distance well clear of his left post.
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Juventus 4-1 Wydad
Kenan Yildiz scored two goals to lift Juventus to a 4-1 victory over Wydad in their Group G match in Philadelphia.
Juventus started brightly in front of a crowd of 31,975 on a sticky afternoon at Lincoln Financial Field, taking the lead in the sixth minute. Yildiz was instrumental in the opener as his angled shot forced Wydad defender Abdelmounaim Boutouil to turn the ball into his own net. Ten minutes later, Yildiz unleashed a spectacular strike from the edge of the box into the top-right corner to give Juventus a 2-0 lead, but a mistake by the Italian defence gifted Thembinkosi Lorch a goal to reduce the deficit in the 25th minute.
Juve, however, extended their lead again through Yildiz’s brilliance, with the 20-year-old Turkey forward scoring their third goal from close-range in the 69th minute, with substitute Dušan Vlahović wrapping up their commanding win from the penalty spot deep in added time.
The result eliminates Wydad, who lost their opening match to Manchester City. Juventus will qualify for the last 16 if Al Ain fail to beat City on Sunday evening.
