With the tournament featuring 32 teams, the race for the title is now down to the best 16. Football fans are eagerly waiting for thrilling clashes in the knockout stage. The battle for a place in the quarter-finals begins tonight. In the opening match at 10 PM, two Brazilian clubs — Botafogo and Palmeiras — will face off. In another clash, English club Chelsea will take on Portuguese side Benfica at 2 AM.
The group stage of the ongoing Club World Cup concluded yesterday morning. Real Madrid played their final group match against Salzburg and secured a 3-0 victory, finishing as Group H champions and booking their spot in the Round of 16. The match also saw Vinícius Júnior score his first goal of the tournament.
However, Real’s star Kylian Mbappé couldn’t feature in any of the group stage matches due to illness. Still, Real Madrid boss Xabi Alonso is hopeful of having him back for the Round of 16. Speaking yesterday, he said:
“We absolutely need him (Mbappé), as soon as possible. We thought he could play this match, but he couldn’t. Now we have four days. We’re hopeful he’ll be ready, but also cautious.”
In the other Group H match, Al Hilal beat Pachuca to finish as runners-up and also qualified for the Round of 16.
Meanwhile, Manchester City appears to be back in familiar form after shaking off recent disappointments. They defeated an Italian club 5-2 and advanced to the Round of 16 as Group G champions — continuing their campaign as defending champions.
Teams confirmed in the Round of 16:
Palmeiras, Botafogo, PSG, Chelsea, Flamengo, Inter Miami, Inter Milan, Fluminense, Benfica, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Monterrey, Juventus, Manchester City, Real Madrid, Al Hilal.