Riveiro's Ahly and Porto in thriller but exit CWC, Messi to meet PSG in last 16

TimesLIVE

24-06-2025

Al Ahly and FC Porto shared a 4-4 thriller in their final game at the Club World Cup on Monday but both will head home after Inter Miami and Palmeiras drew to progress to the round of 16 from Group A.
Palestine striker Wessam Abou Ali scored a hat-trick and Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane also found the net for the Egyptian champions but Porto pegged them back every time they went ahead.
Teenagers Rodrigo Mora and William Gomes, substitute Samu Aghehowa and Pepe all scored for the Portuguese club as both teams all but abandoned defending in search of goals that might keep them alive in the tournament.
In the end, though, a draw was not enough for either side and the 2-2 stalemate between Inter and Palmeiras in Miami was enough to render all of the many other permutations null and void.
Pepe completes an eight-goal thriller! 🔥 #FIFACWC #CWC2025 #SSFootball pic.twitter.com/gTD6pyUbI0
— SuperSport Football ⚽️ (@SSFootball) June 24, 2025
'I think the game in the second half was not a normal football game any more,' said Al Ahly coach Jose Riveiro, the former Orlando Pirates boss.
'A good show for the fans, I guess, a lot of goals. Not the result, obviously, that we were looking for, because we wanted to go through.'
Al Ahly took the early initiative and got their reward when Abou Ali gave them the lead in the 15th minute with a cool finish into the far corner of the net.
Lively 18-year-old Mora equalised eight minutes later after skipping through the Al Ahly defence and past goalkeeper Mohamed El-Shenawy before clipping the ball into the net.
Egypt midfielder Zizo was brought down in the box by Fabio Vieira running onto an Abou Ali cutback in stoppage time at the end of the first, and the Palestinian sent Claudio Ramos the wrong way from the spot to put Al Ahly 2-1 up at the break.
Al Ahly had not scored a single goal in the #FIFACWC until Wessam Abou Ali bagged a hattrick 🤩 #CWC2025 #SSFootball pic.twitter.com/gDRKUT3fZG
— SuperSport Football ⚽️ (@SSFootball) June 24, 2025
Three goals in three minutes soon after the break had the scores back level at 3-3 in the 53rd minute, Gomes starting it all off by curling a beautiful shot into the top right-hand corner of the net.
Abou Ali then completed his hat-trick with a powerful header from a corner but Aghehowa responded in kind almost immediately down the other end.
Ben Romdhane put Al Ahly back in front with a lovely strike from the edge of the box in the 64th and the Egyptian side poured forward looking to boost their goal difference in case the result in Miami went their way.
Ahly missed a host of gilt-edged chances, however, and Pepe ensured the honours would be shared when he drilled a shot from the edge of the box past Al Ahly captain El-Shenawy a minute from time.
Palmeiras rallied from two goals down to snatch a 2-2 draw against Miami and qualify top of Group A in a result that sent both teams through to last 16.
Simply sensational by Suarez 😮‍💨🤌 #FIFACWC #CWC2025 #SSFootball pic.twitter.com/mGrcvAmfYV
— SuperSport Football ⚽️ (@SSFootball) June 24, 2025
Goals from Tadeo Allende and Luis Suarez gave Miami a two-goal lead before Paulinho and Mauricio scored in the last 10 minutes to get Palmeiras back on level terms.
Both teams finished on five points with Inter second on goal difference.
Lionel Messi's Miami will take on Paris St Germain, where the Argentinian spent two seasons from 2021-23, while Palmeiras face fierce Brazilian rivals Botafogo.
'It was a great game from us, it's difficult to play against one of the best teams in South America,' said Inter Miami coach Javier Mascherano, who described it as a 'historic night' for Major League Soccer.
European champions PSG moved into the knockout stage with a 2-0 victory over hosts Seattle Sounders.
The Ligue 1 winners, who suffered a shock defeat by Botafogo on Friday and were guaranteed a spot in the last 16 with a win over Seattle, scored in each half through Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Achraf Hakimi.
With the result, PSG finished with six points from three games in the group stage.
Seattle, who needed to beat PSG by a margin of three goals or more to stand a chance of progressing, exit the CWC winless after three games played in their home stadium, Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington.
It took nearly the entire second half, but relentless attacks on goal paid off for Antoine Griezmann in the 87th minute as the France international striker earned Atletico Madrid to a 1-0 victory over Botafogo in Group B.
After teammate Angel Correa's shot was blocked by a defender, Griezmann sent a left-footed shot into the net.
That was not enough to send the Spaniards into the last 16 as Atletico needed a victory of at least three goals to advance.