Al-Ain Fc emerged victorious after defeating New Zealand’s Team Wellington in the FIFA Club World Cup opening match.
First Half
The Club World Cup action kicked off in frenetic fashion as both teams ran up and down the field with little control over the football. It all changed once Al-Ain settled and controlled the pace of play. The Arab XI had a solid defense at the back. Nonetheless, they could not capitalize on their scoring chances up front. Al-Ain would later regret their imprecisions as Mario Alberto Barcia scored for Team Wellington with a laser-like shot on a counter attack. Wellington was up 1-0
The New Zealand squad remained dangerous despite not having the ball as they really put the pressure on the opposing defense. They moved quickly down the field. Aaron Clapham stunned the Arabs once again with another goal off a counter attack at the fifteen-minute mark. Things looked bright for the host team as they managed to slash the lead in half. Nonetheless, it was overturned by VAR due to a foul. The first half had an exciting finish as both teams scored in the final minutes of play.
The score was 3-1 as Team Wellington had the lead at halftime.
Second Half
The second set of 45 minutes opened up with a bang as Tongo Doumbia scored right off the gates to bring Al-Ain closer as the score was now 3-2. The home team kept putting pressure on Wellington as they overwhelmed their defense by speed down the field. The match then turned into a back and forth game as both teams traded scoring chances. Wellington’s defense later settled on the pitch and was able to keep Ain’s offense in check.
Al-Ain once again had some key scoring chances nearing the last minutes of the half but they could not tie the score. The home XI was running out of chances and time to even the scoreboard. Ain was clearly the better team during the final minutes of regulation time. that was more than evident at the 85th minute as Marcus Berg tied off the score for the home team. This not only leveled the score, but also set up a dramatic finish.
The score was tied at three a piece at the end of regulation. Thirty more minutes of play were on the way.
Extra Time
Extra time was a tight affair. It started with a fast pace as both teams tried to go ahead in the scoreboard. By the end of the first half of extra time, Wellington seemed to be out of gas as their offense was little to none. Despite having a physical advantage, the home squad was not able to score.
After 120 minutes of play, a penalty shootout was needed to decide the winner.
The Shootout
The two teams did not miss to begin the shootout as both Ibrahim Diaky and Ross Allen converted in the first round. Things did not look promising for Al-Ain as Marcus Berg missed the second penalty. Fortunately for the home team, goalkeeper Khalid Elsa saved a shot by Angus Kikolly and the score was still tied after two rounds. Tsukasa Shiotani and Hamish Watson converted on the next round. The score was tied at three as the final round of the shootout was up next.
Fernandes scored for Al.Ain while keeper Kikolly saved the last shot to give him team the win.
Final Score: Al-Ain Fc 3- 3 Team Wellington Fc (4-3 P)
Where To Watch
Guadalajara will square off with Kashima Antlers this Saturday. The match kicks off at 7:30 AM E.T on FS2 and Telemundo.
Al-Ain will go head to head against Esperance de Tunis that same Saturday. The match starts at 11:25 AM E.T on Universo.
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