African champions Al Ahly claimed third place at the FIFA Club World Cup after defeating nine-man Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia 4-0 at the Al Nahyan Stadium in Abu Dhabi, UAE, on Saturday.
An action-packed first half saw the Egyptian giants race into a three-goal lead while their opponents had two men sent off effectively ending the game as a contest.
Yasser Ibrahim opened the scoring for Al Ahly in the eighth minute heading in Ali Maaloul’s free-kick from the left.
Al Hilal were then reduced to 10 men as Matheus Pereira was then sent off six minutes later for a dangerous tackle.
Ibrahim then doubled Al Ahly’s lead in the 17th minute heading in a loose ball in the penalty box after Al Hilal goalkeeper Mohammed Al Owais had saved a rasping long-range effort by Mohamed Hany.
Al Hilal suffered yet another blow as defender Mohamed Kanno was sent off in the 28th minute after a VAR review for cynically kicking his opponent.
Ahmed Abdelkader made it 3-0 five minutes before halftime poking the ball into the net after his initial shot had been blocked.
Amr El Solia scored Al Al Ahly’s fourth goal with a curling long-range shot in the 64th minute. Al Ahly, however, failed to add to their tally thereafter squandering a chance and having a goal ruled out for offside.
The result meant Al Ahly secured a third-place finish at the FIFA Club World cup for a third time in the tournament’s history after similar results in 2005 and 2020.
(Story compiled with assistance from wire reports)
