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FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP: BAYERN MUNICH BEAT AL AHLY TO SET UP FINAL WITH TIGRES

Bayern Munich moved closer to clinching their second-ever FIFA Club World Cup title by defeating Al Ahly in the penultimate round of the competition. The reigning European champions put in an impressive performance to cruise to a 2-0 victory on Monday.

The Bavarians, having named a strong starting lineup for the test, were fully in control from start to finish. It did not take them long to leave their mark with Robert Lewandowski opening the scoring in the 17th minute. The Polish striker then put the game to bed by heading home his second of the night in the 86th minute.

With the night’s result, Bayern Munich will take on Mexican side Tigres in the final of the FIFA Club World Cup on Thursday. The latter defeated South American champions Palmeiras to set up the showdown with Hansi Flick’s. They resultantly became the first team from the CONCACAF region to reach the final of the competition.

For Bayern Munich, the upcoming clash presents them with the opportunity to win their sixth title in 12 months. The German club stamped their dominance in 2020 by securing the German league title and DFB Pokal, the UEFA Champions League, as well as the German and European Super Cups

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EGYPT’S AL AHLY TO FACE BAYERN MUNICH IN FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP.

Egyptian giants Al Ahly will face Bayern Munich in the semi-finals of the Fifa Club World Cup after defeating host side Al Duhail 1-0 on Thursday.

Wearing grey and black because of a colour clash with the red strip of Duhail, Ahly advanced thanks to a 30th-minute goal from midfielder Hussein el Shahat. The victory ensured Ahly became the first African side since 2013 to win their opening Club World Cup match.

The reward for the African champions is a semi-final on Monday against tournament favourites and Uefa Champions League winners Bayern Munich.

Success came as a huge relief for an Egyptian outfit coached by South African Pitso Mosimane as they achieved only one top-three finish in five previous Club World Cup appearances.

It was also a joyful occasion for Mosimane, who lost both matches when he took previous club, Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa, to the 2016 edition.

Backed by the majority of the crowd in the Education City Stadium, Ahly led 1-0 at half-time and had a second goal ruled offside.

The only goal came when Duhail cheaply surrendered possession close to their box and one pass set up El Shahat to fire a low shot into the corner of the net.

Walter Bwalya netted eight minutes later for the nine-time African champions after racing clear and the goal was initially awarded before VAR revealed the Congolese was fractionally offside.

Starved of possession in the first half, Duhail were more assertive at the start of the second half and forced two corners in quick succession.

Ahly rode the storm and held on to the slender lead despite having far less of the ball than during the opening 45 minutes.

In the first quarter-final earlier Thursday, Tigres of Mexico came from behind to edge Ulsan Hyundai of South Korea 2-1 and book a Sunday meeting with Palmeiras of Brazil for a place in the final.

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AL AHLY BEAT ZAMALEK 2-1 TO LIFT CAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FOR RECORD NINTH TIME.

Al Ahly’s Mohamed Magdi scored a stunning goal four minutes from time as they beat bitter Cairo rivals Zamalek 2-1 to claim the 2019-20 CAF Champions League title and extend their record number of wins in Africa’s elite club competition to nine.

The teams were locked at 1-1 at the Cairo International Stadium when midfielder Magdi collected a loose ball 30 metres out, showed neat control under pressure and volleyed into the corner of the net.

It sparked wild scenes of celebration from the players, and might have been applauded by 100,000 fans in the stadium but instead was netted in front of empty stands due to COVID-19 restrictions.

The title win is a second for Ahly coach Pitso Mosimane after the South African led Mamelodi Sundowns to victory in 2016, when they also beat Zamalek in what was then a two-legged decider.

Friday’s match is the first time since the inaugural African Champions Cup final in 1965 that the final was a single game.

Ahly took an early lead when Amr Soleya headed an in-swinging corner into the net inside five minutes, reward for some early pressure as they made the brighter start.

But Zamalek grew more dominant as the half wore on and levelled thanks to a touch of magic from winger Shikabala.

He collected the ball out wide on the right, skipped past three defenders and unleashed an unstoppable shot into the top corner of the goal from the edge of the box.

Zamalek continued to take the game to their rivals and were unlucky not to go ahead just past the hour when Ahmed Sayed’s thunderous 35-metre drive smashed into the post.

But Magdi settled the contest with his own moment of brilliance as Ahly won the title for the first time in seven years to make up for final defeats in 2017 and 2018.