Borussia Dortmund narrowly missed a place in the FIFA Club World Cup semi-finals, succumbing to a 3-2 defeat against Real Madrid in New Jersey on Saturday.
The match began promisingly for the German side, with Brandt narrowly missing a headed opportunity in the fifth minute following an assist from Adeyemi. However, Real Madrid quickly asserted dominance and took the lead through a well-placed effort from Gonzalo Garcia, who capitalized on a lapse in Dortmund’s defensive coverage.
Real Madrid extended their advantage in the 20th minute when Alexander-Arnold’s pass found Fran Garcia unmarked in the box, allowing him to score despite the presence of multiple Dortmund defenders. While Real Madrid appeared to ease their intensity following the goal, Dortmund attempted to regain momentum, but struggled to create significant scoring chances. A potential further setback was averted when Vinicius Jr. slipped during a counter-attack, preventing an easy goal over Kobel. Real Madrid held a deserved lead at half-time.
The intensity ratcheted up significantly in the closing stages of the second half. Dortmund found a glimmer of hope as Maximilian Beier scored in the second minute of added time. However, Arda Güler swiftly restored Real Madrid’s two-goal lead just two minutes later. The match then took a dramatic turn, culminating in a penalty for Dortmund and a red card for Real Madrid’s Dean Huijsen. Serhou Guirassy converted the resulting penalty to bring the score to 3-2. In the final, almost symbolic, moment of the match, Marcel Sabitzer had a late chance to equalize, but his effort was unsuccessful, confirming Dortmund’s elimination from the competition.