From South America to Europe to Asia and beyond, the Club World Cup’s global reach delivered another day of high-stakes action and compelling matchups. Tuesday’s slate featured drama, near upsets and early statement wins, but the day’s most intriguing moments came in Pasadena, California, where Monterrey and Inter Milan shared the spotlight in a tightly contested draw that showcased the competitive flavor FIFA was hoping to achieve.
A full recap of Tuesday’s results follows.
Tuesday’s Club World Cup results
Borussia Dortmund 0-0 Fluminense
The German giants failed to capitalize on their opportunities and get past the Rio de Janeiro club. Their matchup was one of the most high-profile games Tuesday, with both teams being staples in their respective leagues. Dortmund recently fell to Barcelona in the quarterfinal of the UEFA Champions League. Meanwhile, their Brazilian counterpart fell to domestic competitor Atlético Mineiro in the same stage of the Copa Libertadores. While Dortmund was favored to win, Fluminense outshot them, 14-7 (5-3 on target), as the sides battled to a scoreless stalemate. The teams split points to open Group F action.
River Plate 3-1 Urawa Red Diamonds
Despite failing to secure a clean sheet, River Plate’s dominant win over the Urawa Reds was never in question in their Group E opener. The Argentine side opened the game with goals from Facundo Colidio and Sebastián Driussi to head into halftime with a 2-0 lead. Yūsuke Matsuo gave the Reds a glimmer of hope in the 58th minute before River Plate continued to dominate the possession. Maximiliano Meza restored the two-goal lead in the 73rd and secured the three points for his team.
Mamelodi Sundowns 1-0 Ulsan
The third match of the day was largely tilted in the South African Mamelodi Sundowns’ favor, as they owned nearly 60% of possession throughout the match and edged Ulsan in goal attempts 12-7. The lone goal came in the 36th minute in Orlando, as Iqraam Rayners netted in an assist from Lucas Ribeiro. That score was sandwiched by two other apparent goals from Rayners, though the first attempt was disallowed after a VAR review because of a handball, and the second was offside. With the win and the Dortmond draw, Mamelodi Sundowns rise to the top of Group F.
Monterrey 1-1 Inter Milan
Monterrey secured a trip to this summer’s tournament via a win in the CONCACAF Champions League (now Cup) way back in 2021. Four years later, Los Rayados entered Tuesday’s match at the Rose Bowl with only goalkeeper Esteban Andrada remaining from that trophy-winning squad, the last to win any type of hardware for the Mexican side. So it was indeed stunning when Monterrey opened the scoring against Inter Milan in the 25th minute off a superb header by none other than Sergio Ramos, who signed a one-year, $4 million deal with the team in February with the Club World Cup appearance as a deciding factor.
The heavily pro-Rayados fans were soon quieted, however, when Inter’s own World Cup-winning icon Lautaro Martínez powered in the equalizer from a yard out off a sweet free-kick setup. The 1-1 scoreline would hold as both sides clamped down on defense in the second half. After getting molly-whopped by Paris Saint-Germain last month in the UEFA Champions League final, Inter came in with something to prove, but the Mexican side was the one that rose to the challenge.
Highlight of the day
Group E and Group F standings
|
Rank |
Group E |
P |
GD |
PTS |
|
1 |
River Plate |
1 |
2 |
3 |
|
2 |
Monterrey |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
3 |
Internazionale |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
4 |
Urawa |
1 |
-2 |
0 |
|
Rank |
Group F |
P |
GD |
PTS |
|
1 |
Borussia Dortmund |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
2 |
Fluminense |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
3 |
Ulsan HD |
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
4 |
Mamelodi |
1 |
0 |
1 |
Wednesday’s Club World Cup schedule
Group G: Manchester City vs. Wydad AC at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia; 12 p.m. ET on DAZN
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Group H: Real Madrid vs. Al Hilal at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami; 3 p.m. ET on TNT, truTV, DAZN
Group H: Pachuca vs. FC Salzburg at TQL Stadium in Cincinnati; 6 p.m. ET on DAZN
Group G: Al Ain FC vs. Juventus FC at Audi Field in Washington, D.C.; 9 p.m. ET on DAZN
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