Kuumar Shyam (Abu Dhabi)
Hosts Al Ain thrashed Auckland City 6-2 in the African-Asian-Pacific play-off match of the FIFA Intercontinental Cup on Sunday at the Hazza bin Zayed Stadium to kickstart the revival of the tournament which the world body has described it as their annual club competition for continental champions. Five players got their names on the scoresheet, including a double from substitute star playmaker Sofiane Rahimi.
As part of the five matches to be played, the play-off will feature the winners of the Asian Champions League and the Oceana counterparts. Hernan Crespo went for an almost new-look side with Rahimi among other regulars on the bench.
A great set of coordination and brilliance for Al Ain's first goal set the momentum for an eventful first half when Khalid Al Bloushi took a corner kick in the sixth minute, but tapped for a 1-2 before coming up and floating in a volley into the box. Fabio Cardoso jumped ahead of Sekou Gassama, the lone striker in a 4-5-1 combination.
Five minutes later, Gassama persisted with challenges from four defenders and pierced the ball in to the goal from a tight, straight angle with his left foot. As the clock headed to the final five minutes of the half, Jerson Lagos' corner-kick curved in past Khalid Eisa and the jumping defence untouched into the far post.
As soon as the game restarted, Gassama took the ball, forced ahead but quickly released it to Mathias Palacios, who beat the offside trap and chipped it past the Auckland goalkeeper Conor Tracey.
Crespo foresaw the frenzied pace bringing its own set of problems as he replaced defender Erik, but still a lapse in concentration saw Myer Bevan getting a back pass and his first touch immediately reduce the margin in the 54th minute.
At 3-2 with Auckland gaining confidence, Crespo moved in quickly to make a double substitution on the hour mark and in came Rahimi and Alejandro Romero or 'Kaku'. The changes bore effect by forcing the New Zealand rivals to consolidate while Al Ain's attack got a very heavy edge. After 78 minutes, the hosts picked up a new gear.
In a repeat of the first goal, it was Rahimi who just glided in to guide his header to a cross and put Al Ain ahead by two goals again. He could have immediately added in a second with a counter ball lobbed to his feet and just the onrushing Tracey to beat. But Rahimi went for the top netting of the goal and managed to find the crossbar.
While Auckland went for broke with nothing to lose in the play-off, it was Kaku who had a crack in injury time and came up with a brilliant curling volley worthy enough to beat the best in the business. Kaku was not done yet, as he ran with the ball on another counter two minutes later and released the ball to Rahimi. This time the Moroccan took his time with the defenders throwing their bodies in the way before he tapped in from close range to end Auckland City's agony.
تمت المهمة بنجاح.. على طريقة الزعيم ✅ pic.twitter.com/eDtJ0oWgx5
— نادي العين (@alainfcae) September 22, 2024
FIFA have revived the Intercontinental Cup (IC) which had given way to the Club World Cup, a clash of clubs representing five different continents. There is a strong debate going on with a case being made for the Club World Cup to be expanded to 32 teams. Meanwhile, FIFA have announced that the Intercontinental Cup with be their annual club competition, with Real Madrid set to play directly in the final for this year.
The world body announced the details on the eve of the IC's start, which began with Al Ain hosting Auckland City. The tournament will continue to feature continental champions and will have five matches.
Except for Sunday's result, all matches will have silverware to fight for. The next match will be held in Egypt in October and the final three matches will be held in Doha, Qatar.
Schedule and Format:
Match 1: FIFA African-Asian-Pacific Cup Play-Off (Al Ain vs Auckland City on September 22)
Match 2: African-Asian-Pacific Cup: The winners of Match 1 will take on African Champions League winners Al Ahly for the title on October 29 in Cairo.
Match 3: Derby of the Americas: The CONCACAF Champions League winners Pachuca take on CONMEBOL Libertadores Cup champions, who's yet to be confirmed, in Qatar on December 11.
Match 4: FIFA Challenger Cup: Winners of Match 2 vs. Match 3 (December 14)
Match 5: FIFA Intercontinental Cup: Real Madrid, the reigning European champions, will take on the winner of the Challenger Cup (December 18)