Real Madrid defeated Japan’s Kashima Antlers securing the final spot in the 2018 FIFA Club World Cup final.
First Half
The match started out very evenly to the surprise of many. Real Madrid struggled to generate offense as their passes were clumsy and imprecise. Add to that, a solid defense by Kashima Antlers, they made for a tough opponent during the opening minutes of the match. Despite their defense, the Japanese club was not as successful on the offensive side of things as they were easily stopped by Los Merengues.
Real Madrid settled into the pitch once the half an hour mark arrived. The Spaniards controlled ball possession and pace of play as the clock winded down to halftime. it seemed as if Kashima were going to be able to hold on to the tie before the halftime whistle. Nonetheless, Gareth Bale scored for Madrid assisted by a great pass by Marcelo.
Real was ahead 1-0 by the end of the first half.
Second Half
The Asian XI started the second half with an intensive style of play. They needed to level the score. However, this proved detrimental for Kashima as it brought in even more problems. They left plenty of spaces at the back due to their over aggressiveness, Real Madrid noticed that and made the Asian club pay for it. Bale score once again at the 53rd minute of the match due to Kashima’s careless defense at the back.
The Match seemed hard enough for the Japanese, nonetheless, Madrid had one more goal up their sleeve as Bale completed the hat-trick with one more goal at the 55th minute. After that, the Spanish squad let their foot off the gas and focused on retaining ball possession.
Kashima managed to get one back despite Real’s dominance as Shouma Doi scored after VAR overturned an offside call. The European champions were up by two as the clock winded down to the 90th minute.
Final Score: Kashima Antlers 1-3 Real Madrid CF
Where To Watch
Real Madrid will square off against host team Al-Ain Fc this Saturday at the Club World Cup final. The match kicks off at 11:00 AM E.T on FS1 and Telemundo.
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