Fluminense is the first team to qualify for the semi-finals of the 2025 Club World Cup, after beating 2-1 to Al-Hilal with goals from Matheus Martinelli and Hércules, responded by Marcos Leonardo, in a match that became a 'rush' of emotions. Especially, from the second half.
The match became quite dense in the first half, with two cautious teams on the pitch, apparently more interested in testing the opponent's performance than in generating any kind of danger. This meant that much of this first section was not too brilliant, far from what a duel in this type of instance should be.
Martinelli's goal and immediate reaction from Al-Hilal
It wouldn't be until the 39th minute when the first emotion of the match arrived. This landed courtesy of Matheus Martinelli, who, taking advantage of a poor clearance from João Cancelo, recovered the ball in the area. After controlling the ball, he turned around and took a dry left-footed shot to beat Bono's resistance.
That score ended up being the necessary wake-up call to ignite the match. Shortly after, Al-Hilal generated a stellar dangerous chance with a header from Koulibaly in the area that was repelled in extremis by Fabio, goalkeeper of the 'Flu' and who, going to the ground with a providential stretch, kept the zero in his goal.
Zero that, by the way, was about to break in a risky situation just before the break. In the 47th minute, the referee, Danny Makkelie, was close to whistling a penalty in favor of Al-Hilal after an action in which Samuel Xavier brought down Marcos Leonardo inside the area. However, after reviewing the play in the VAR, the referee ruled that there was no infraction.
Marcos Leonardo tied with a great goal after the break
Already in the second half, both squads came out in 'rock and roll mode', and Simone Inzaghi's team tied at 49'. The executioner was the 'Emperor', Marcos Leonardo, who, taking advantage of a ball lowered to the area with a header from Koulibaly, received and, without saying a word, drew a point-blank whiplash, impossible for Fabio.
That score marked the starting gun for what ended up being an authentic exchange of blows, almost like a boxing match. The clearest chance beyond the goal came in the 54th minute, after a serious mistake by Renan Lodi, who, with a defective pass back, enabled Germán Cano in total solitude.
However, Bono appeared with a top intervention, managing to get the ball in the one-on-one with a saving slap. If it wasn't for him, it was the clear 2-1.
Hércules scored the definitive 2-1 and put the 'Flu' in the semi-finals
Where Bono couldn't do anything was in the 71st minute, when Fluminense scored the 2-1. Hércules did not waste a bad rejection from the defense of Al-Hilal, sneaked through the right sector of the area and, with the ball dominated, took a crossed right-footed shot to the farthest post of the fortress defended by the Moroccan '1'. Little to do.
Precisely, that would be the last change in the score, in a match that, towards the end, became quite moved, with chances from side to side. An Al-Hilal more proactive due to the need for the result, and a 'Flu' who knew how to hold on very well —from physical exhaustion— in the defensive section. And when it was reactive, it managed to destabilize the bottom of the Arab combined.
A victory that qualifies Fluminense to the semi-final of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, for the second time in its history. From here, those of Renato Gaúcho await a rival between Palmeiras and Chelsea.
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