Club World Cup Wrap: Madrid held as Man City and Juventus victorious
Spanish hotshots Real Madrid were held to a 1-1 draw by Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal at the Club World Cup in new coach Xabi Alonso's first game in charge on Wednesday, after Manchester City got off to a winning start.
The 2025 Summer Club World Cup entered its fifth day of competitive action on Wednesday, with four matches played across several venues in the United States of America.
Spanish hotshots Real Madrid were held to a 1-1 draw by Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal at the Club World Cup in new coach Xabi Alonso's first game in charge on Wednesday, after Manchester City got off to a winning start.
In the late game, Juventus thrashed Al Ain 5-0 in Washington after visiting US President Donald Trump at the White House.
Federico Valverde had a stoppage-time penalty saved as Real were forced to settle for a point in the Group H match in Miami having taken the lead.
It was a disappointing outcome for the large contingent of fans of the Spanish side in the crowd of 62,415 at Hard Rock Stadium.
"The first half wasn't as good as the second one.
In the second half we had better chances, better control.
For sure we have the principles to start building something, but we could have won," Alonso told broadcaster DAZN.
Alonso gave debuts to new signings Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dean Huijsen in defence but Real were missing Kylian Mbappe through illness.
Elsewhere, RB Salzburg took the lead in Group H with a 2-1 win over Mexican outfit Pachuca in Cincinnati.
The match was suspended early in the second half with the Austrian team leading 1-0 because of a storm, resuming 97 minutes later.
In Philadelphia, Phil Foden and Jeremy Doku scored first-half goals as Pep Guardiola's City eased to a 2-0 win against Wydad Casablanca of Morocco in Group G.
City gave debuts to new signings Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki, but it was Foden who opened the scoring inside two minutes.
Doku converted the second goal from a Foden corner as City eased to a strong lead inside the first half.
Juventus, who sent a delegation to the White House earlier in the day to present Trump with a club shirt, surged to the top of Group G with a crushing triumph over UAE team Al Ain at Audi Field.
On loan Paris Saint-Germain forward Randal Kolo Muani and Francisco Conceicao both struck twice while Kenan Yildiz was also on target.
The second round of group games begins on Thursday, with matches including Lionel Messi's Inter Miami against Porto and European champions Paris Saint-Germain facing Copa Libertadores winners Botafogo.
