Gonzalo Garcia rewarded his coach’s faith in him with the opening goal to help Real Madrid to a wild-ending 3-2 win against Borussia Dortmund in East Rutherford, N.J. on Saturday afternoon to advance to the semifinals of the Club World Cup.
Real Madrid will play Paris Saint-Germain in the same city on Wednesday.
With superstar Kylian Mbappe gradually recovering from an illness, coach Xabi Alonso elected to instead start the 21-year-old Garcia and he scored his fourth goal of the Club World Cup in the 10th minute.
Fran Garcia, no relation, made it 2-0 in the 20th.
Then it got crazy. Dortmund’s Max Beier cut the lead in half in the second minute of second-half stoppage time.
Mbappe, who entered in the 67th minute, made it 3-1 in 90+4 with a spectacular side-volley but Real Madrid defender Dean Huijsen was red-carded in 90+6 for a foul in the box and Serhou Guirassy converted the penalty kick in 90+8.
Dortmund had one final try and Thibaut Courtois made a great full-extension save on Marcel Sabitzer in 90+10.
The match looked fully in hand until a clearance bounced to Beier and he first-timed a strike that brushed Huijsen on the way in to make it 2-1.
Mbappe then did his thing from the left side of the 6-yard box off the second assist of the match for Guler.
Just as Real Madrid was ready to exhale, Huijsen prevented goal-scoring opportunity and Guirassy scored for the third time in two matches.
Huijsen is suspended for the semifinal.
It was left to Courtois with his diving stop at the left corner to finally seal the win.
Real Madrid holds off hard-charging Borussia Dortmund to earn semifinal berth
https://arab.news/4ek36
Real Madrid holds off hard-charging Borussia Dortmund to earn semifinal berth
- Real Madrid will play Paris Saint-Germain in the same city on Wednesday
Fans throw objects onto field after Messi visits Kolkata’s Salt Lake stadium
- Messi is in India as part of a tour during which he is scheduled to attend concerts, youth football clinics, a Padel tournament and launch charitable initiatives
- The 2022 World Cup winner walked around the pitch at the stadium waving to the fans,
NEW DELHI: Lionel Messi’s highly anticipated visit to India turned into chaos for fans of the football icon in Kolkata on Saturday, after his brief appearance at a local stadium sparked anger among thousands in attendance.
The Argentine football star, who is on a three-day visit to India billed as “GOAT (greatest of all time) Tour,” arrived in the eastern state of West Bengal early on Saturday. His main public event in Kolkata took place about noon at the Salt Lake Stadium, where thousands of spectators had reportedly paid up to 12,000 rupees, or $133, to see him.
Messi was seen walking around the pitch and waving to the crowd, but obscured by a large group of people, before leaving only about 20 minutes after arrival.
Widely circulating clips online showed frustrated fans, some clad in the Argentinian team’s sky blue and white jersey, breaking down barricades and storming the pitch after he left, while others ripped up stadium seats and threw items onto the track.
“People are very disappointed that this ended this way. I spent 4,500 rupees, but there are people who spent more,” Ayan Das, a Messi fan who attended the stadium event, told Arab News.
“It was a disappointment that Messi, who was supposed to be in the stadium for at least one hour, left in 15 minutes.”
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that she was “deeply disturbed and shocked” by how the Kolkata event unfolded.
“I sincerely apologise to Lionel Messi, as well as to all sports lovers and his fans, for the unfortunate incident,” she wrote on X.
Local authorities have since launched an investigation into the incident and arrested the event organizer, who has been identified as Satadru Dutta.
Messi was returning to Kolkata — which has a large football fanbase in an otherwise cricket-crazed country — after first visiting in 2011 for an international friendly match with Venezuela.
This time around, the city had built a 21-meter statue of the 2022 World Cup winner, which he inaugurated virtually as part of the visit.
After weeks of build-up and excitement, the disappointment was palpable for the entire city, which has been looking forward to seeing Messi in real life, said Ranadeep Mukherjee, who owns coaching center German Football Academy in Kolkata.
“For so many people, this was their lifelong dream, right? I know people who have paid off their whole month’s salary to buy one ticket for this event. I mean, that has been the level of commitment. People have taken loans. People have, like, gone beyond their means to buy a ticket to see their god for one minute,” he told Arab News.
“As a Kolkata native, it is very sad for me, and like, in a way, it is sort of a shame for the city that we could not show him how much of a football-loving city we are and how good of a fan base we are.”
But other Indian football fans were still brimming with excitement, as Messi’s tour of India also included stops in Hyderabad, Mumbai and New Delhi, where he is scheduled to attend concerts, youth football clinics, a padel tournament and launch charitable initiatives.
“It will really inspire a lot of people, a lot of young kids and coaches and everywhere,” said Peter Alex Todd, a footballer from the northeastern state of Assam.
“I believe we, all football lovers and the young generation, will be very much inspired to watch him.”
For Aarav Dadhwal, a 17-year-old student in Delhi, Messi’s visit was a “dream come true.”
“This is like once in a lifetime that a player like him comes and visits India. So many people who might never get a chance to see him playing can get a glimpse of him,” he told Arab News.
“Many people will definitely be inspired by him. And I also think that inspiration is necessary, and he also, like should take some initiative, like start some academies in India, because India’s progress in football is much-needed.”
