Fluminense challenges Al-Ahly for the dream of going to the World Cup final

Fluminense will experience another historic day this Monday (18). The current champion of the Copa Libertadores da América will participate for the first time in the Club World Cup. Also carrying the Brazilian flag, the Rio club debuts in the semi-finals against Al-Ahly, from Egypt, who already had to eliminate an opponent to stay alive. The match starts at 3pm at the King Abdullah Stadium, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The team that wins this duel will face in the final the winner of the clash between Urawa Red, from Japan, and Manchester City, from England, scheduled for Tuesday, at 3 pm, in the same location. As the games are eliminatory, in the event of a draw in normal time, there will be a 30-minute extra time, with two 15-minute halves, and, if necessary, the place in the decision will be defined by penalty kicks.

This season, led by coach Fernando Diniz, Fluminense was twice champion of Rio de Janeiro with a 4-1 victory over Flamengo and then won the unprecedented Libertadores title against Boca Juniors, winning 2-1 in extra time, at Maracanã.

Lighter with the continental conquest, Fluminense arrives confident to face Al Ahly, but it won’t be easy. In the last five editions of the World Cup, the Libertadores champion team did not reach the final three times. In 2018, River Plate was eliminated by Al Ain, from the United Arab Emirates. Two years later, Palmeiras fell to Tigres, from Mexico, 1-0, and, in 2022, Flamengo lost to Al-Hilal, from Saudi Arabia. Flamengo, in 2019, and Palmeiras, in 2021, managed to advance and lost the title, respectively, to Liverpool and Chelsea.

Another psychological ‘pressure’ for Fluminense is that Brazil’s last World Cup title came 11 years ago, in 2012, when Corinthians scored 1-0 at Chelsea. Since then, only European clubs have won: Real Madrid (2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2022), Bayern Munich (2013 and 2020), Barcelona (2015), Liverpool (2019) and Chelsea (2021).

Current champions of the African Champions League, Al-Ahly entered the World Cup in the second phase and easily beat Al-Ittihad, from Saudi Arabia, 3-1, even with the opponent counting on some stars such as the French Benzema and Kanté, as well as Brazilians Fabinho and Romarinho. The Egyptians still have a large number of fans in Saudi Arabia, who make them feel at home.

Eleven-time champions of the African Champions League, Al-Ahly is competing in a World Cup semi-final for the fifth time, three of them in the last four years. That’s why it’s called the “Real Madrid of Africa”. He has participated in the championship nine times, but has never reached the final and has three third places. In terms of number of participations, it is second only to Auckland City, from New Zealand, present in 12 editions of the tournament. The club from Cairo, capital of Egypt, is the biggest champion in its country with 43 titles and 12 runners-up, in addition to 38 national cups. Founded in 1909, it has an estimated fan base of 25 million people.

For one of the most important duels in Fluminense’s history, Fernando Diniz makes no secret of the fact that he will take to the field with the best he has. The only concern is right-back Samuel Xavier, who has not played since November after being injured in a game against São Paulo, but he is recovered from injury and training normally with the rest of the squad in Saudi Arabia. Guga remains on reserve and can enter during the game. Striker John Kennedy, the scorer of the Libertadores title goal, is expected to start on the bench, but his inclusion during the game is almost certain. He could fill in for a striker or even for someone in midfield, which would make the team very aggressive.

In any case, the coach spoke about the emotion of taking Fluminense to the Club World Cup. “For us, competing in the Club World Cup has been every day since I arrived at Fluminense. It was a dream that we had. We prepared very adequately. It seemed like this day would never come, but it did. Now the focus is on doing have a good game and move forward”, said the commander, avoiding commenting on a possible final against Manchester City, favorites in the other semi-final.

At the official press conference, Diniz said little about his team, but showed he was well aware of the opponent. “We’ve seen seven of their games, now eight, and we know they’re strong. They’re a very well managed team, they have great players and a huge fan base. We’re totally focused on this game,” he concluded.

On the other hand, after showing a lot of organization, consistency and good execution of concepts in the quarter-final victory against Al-Ittihad, Swiss coach Marcel Koller has already shown that Al Ahly will not make it easier for the Brazilian club to reach the decision.

Armed in a 4-1-4-1 formation, they are a fast team, which defends as a block and attacks very easily. But there will be an important absence. French striker Anthony Modeste, one of the season’s main signings, was childishly sent off in the quarter-finals, and is now serving a suspension. He entered the field in the 42nd minute of the second half and was sent off three minutes later. Now it is no longer an option.