Kane stars as Bayern beat Boca Juniors 2-1
PA Media/dpa
London
Harry Kane scored one and created another in a 2-1 win over Boca Juniors as Bayern Munich became the first side to beat South American opposition at this year's Club World Cup.
Kane, who drew a blank during the German's 10-goal mauling of Auckland in their opening game, produced a smart first-half finish.
Boca, roared on by a partisan crowd at Miami's Hard Rock Stadium, drew level through Miguel Merentiel's stunning solo effort midway through the second half.
However, Michael Olise, who had already had an early effort disallowed, scored what proved to be the winner after Kane's composed pass, with victory sealing Bayern's progress from Group C.
Olise had a ninth-minute effort ruled out by VAR following a foul on Boca goalkeeper Agustin Marchesin before Kingsley Coman fired an effort over the bar.
Kane opened the scoring in the 18th minute when he reacted fastest to a loose ball in the penalty area and guided a left-footed finish into the bottom corner.
Bayern should have doubled their advantage moments later, but Coman failed to get a touch as Serge Gnabry flashed the ball across the face of goal.
Kevin Zenon's powerful free-kick had to be punched away by Manuel Neuer as Boca threatened for the first time, while at the other end, Marchesin was alert to prevent Olise rounding him following a swift counter-attack.
Zenon shot straight at Neuer from 12 yards after Bayern failed to clear their lines, while at the other end Olise had a free-kick well saved by Marchesin and Kane sent a set-piece narrowly over the bar.
After the interval, a Boca break ended with Luis Advincula firing over the bar.
Olise spurned another decent opening as he shot straight at Marchesin after Raphael Guerreiro's clever dummy.
Kane had an effort deflected behind by Lautaro Di Lollo but Boca grew in presence as the half wore on.
Merentiel equalized after 66 minutes with a superb effort, gathering the ball near the right touchline and rounding Josip Stanisic before firing past Neuer.
Olise restored the Bundesliga champions' lead seven minutes from time as Kane laid the ball back for the France forward and he drove the ball into the bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Konrad Laimer looked to have added a third after his composed finish following a neat one-two with Thomas Müller, but the Austrian was flagged offside.
There was a slight dampener on the result for Bayern as Jamal Musiala left the field injured.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Al Jazeera
10 hours ago
- Al Jazeera
Chelsea halted only by lightning, beating Benfica as CW quarterfinals await
Chelsea became the first English side to reach the quarterfinals of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup following a 4-1 win after extra time against the 10-man Benfica in North Carolina. Reece James scored the opening goal of the game in the 64th minute on Saturday, with a spectacular free kick from a tight angle on the left wing. Angel Di Maria levelled the match in the fifth minute of stoppage time from the penalty spot after a soft handball decision against Malo Gusto. Goals from Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and K Dewsbury-Hall restored and sealed Chelsea's advantage in extra time. It was the least the Blues deserved after dominating the match from start to finish. The end was heavily delayed, however, when the players were removed from the field of play at Bank Of America Stadium in Charlotte by the referee due to a nearby lightning storm. The delay was nearly two hours in length, despite only four minutes remaining of the match when the players left the field. Chelsea's players were visibly annoyed by the decision to halt the game so close to the full-time whistle, and with victory in sight. Unusually high temperatures for the time of year contributed to the inclement conditions. Both the cause and the effect are a concern ahead of the FIFA 2026 World Cup also being staged by the United States next summer. It is the sixth time a Club World Cup match has been halted due to bad weather. Common public safety protocols in the US mandate that outdoor sports events are suspended for at least 30 minutes when lightning is seen or thunder heard. The Blues dominated the possession and the chances, the best of which in the first half fell to Marc Cucurella whose curling effort from just inside the box was headed off the line by by Benfica's Antonio Silva at the back post, with the keeper well beaten. Cole Palmer drew the finest save from Benfica's Ukrainian keeper, Anatoliy Trubin, when he was slipped into the box and powered a shot at the near post. Trubin was left red-faced by the moment of magic from James to win the match as the wide player drilled his effort in at the near post, with the keeper seemingly more concerned about a potential cross. Benfica's leveller – after the lightning delay – came after Gusto left his arms flailing in the air and, although soft, the Video Assistant Referee had little choice but to call the referee to review the decision. Di Maria coolly slotted home the resulting kick, despite the stormy conditions that surrounded the stadium. The comeback from Benfica, after the heavy delay to the match, was merely a further annoyance to Chelsea, whose job was made all the easier by a second yellow shown to Gianluca Prestianni. The Benfica forward was booked during the celebrations for his side's equaliser and was then shown a second yellow for a late tackle after only two minutes of extra time. Palmeiras first to book CWC quarterfinal spot Paulinho worked his way between a pair of defenders and rolled a shot into the back of the net in extra time earlier on Saturday to put Palmeiras into the quarterfinals with a 1-0 victory over Brazilian league rival Botafogo. Paulinho, who has made one appearance for Brazil's national team, dribbled through the defence with an inside cut from the right wing in the 100th minute. He then sent a left-footed shot into the lower left corner of John's net. Botafogo created multiple chances for an equalizer in the final minutes but could not get a goal. The match at Lincoln Financial Field was full of attacking play, with a combined 35 shot attempts. Palmeiras, however, ended the match with 10 men after defender Gustavo Gomez was given a red card. Gomez received a second yellow card in the 116th minute after tackling Igor Jesus in midfield to prevent Botafogo from starting a counterattack. The 33,657 fans in attendance helped set the tone for the match with incessant cheering, bringing the flavour of a South American game to the United States. 'Coach has been saying this since the start of the season that we have a dream and dreaming costs nothing,' Palmeiras defender Bruno Fuchs said after. 'We follow that dream, one game after another. Always thinking about the present, about the next game… We're very happy, we're pleased to have qualified, and as I said, we have to keep dreaming.'
Qatar Tribune
13 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Fernandez ‘will be even better' next season insists Chelsea boss Maresca
PA Media/dpa London Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca expects Enzo Fernandez to get even better as he prepares for a reunion with his former club Benfica. The Argentina midfielder, signed from the Portuguese giants for a then British record £106.8million two years ago, took time to find his feet at Stamford Bridge. But he excelled in the second half of the 2024-25 season, finishing the campaign with eight goals, and has continued to shine at the Club World Cup. The 24-year-old scored in the opening win over Los Angeles FC and created two goals in as many minutes as the Blues beat Esperance Tunis 3-0 in their final group game on Tuesday. Their reward is a last-16 clash with Benfica in Charlotte on Saturday. Maresca told reporters at his pre-match press conference: 'I'm very pleased with Enzo, especially because, first of all, he's a nice boy. He's polite, he's a good boy. 'Then he's worked very well in all aspects inside the pitch, outside the pitch. Our struggle at the beginning was (for him) to understand the way we want to play. 'But he is doing fantastic in terms of numbers, goal assists. This is what we want from our attacking players. 'I've said many times that I prefer to have the attacking players score 10-12 goal each, rather than just a striker with 40 goals. 'So his contribution this season has been top and I am sure next season will be even better.' Despite that, Fernandez could face competition for his place after Maresca suggested he sees Brazilian Andrey Santos more as an attacking player than a defensive one. The highly-rated 21-year-old has rejoined the club this summer after a successful loan spell at Strasbourg and made his debut as a second-half substitute against Esperance. Maresca said: 'His season has been very good but I think you need time to adapt. 'In terms of position, I see Andrey in this moment in more like Enzo's position than Romeo's (Lavia) position. 'The Premier League demands (players) to be physically strong. In this moment, I see Andrey more of an attacking player than defensive in the field.' Maresca added that he hopes 19-year-old defender Josh Acheampong will stay with the club despite being linked with Newcastle and Borussia Dortmund. He said: 'My idea or my plan with Josh is quite clear. I think he potentially can be a top defender for this club. I feel the best plan for Josh is to be with us.' Maresca would also like England international Trevoh Chalobah to stay, but offered no guarantees. He said: 'All the players that are here with us, I don't want to lose them but when the transfer window is open, unfortunately, anything can happen - not only for Trevoh, for (all) the 25 players of the squad.' Maresca expects a tight contest against Benfica. He said: 'It's going to be a balanced game, a tough game. In this kind of game the small details are very important.'
Qatar Tribune
13 hours ago
- Qatar Tribune
Sabalenka ‘learnt a lot' from reaction to losing French Open final
PA Media/DPA London World number one Aryna Sabalenka has been able to clear the air with Coco Gauff after her emotional reaction to losing the French Open final to the American earlier this month. The Belarusian was heavily criticised after attributing the defeat to her own mistakes rather than Gauff's performance, and apologised both privately and publicly for describing the match as the worst final she had played. The two players looked to have put those hostilities firmly behind them in social media clips posted from Wimbledon on Friday, and Sabalenka was contrite in accepting the negative response her comments prompted. She said: 'I've always been really good with Coco. Honestly, as I said in the statement and I messaged to her, I didn't really want to offend her. 'I was just completely upset with myself, and emotions got over me. I just completely lost it. 'I did what I did. I get what I deserve, I believe. It was a tough time for me. The lesson is learned. 'Honestly, I'm kind of glad what happened to me at Paris, because I was able to learn a lot. 'I was able to sit back and be open to myself, not just to ignore some things. I think I realised a lot of things about myself in those last stages of the tournament. 'We spoke with the team. I think we learned something. I really hope it will never happen again.' Sabalenka, who is up against Canadian Carson Branstine in the first round, has no qualms about facing Gauff again should the two end up involved in a rematch in the Wimbledon final. 'If I make it to the finals, I don't care (who I play), but also I would love to face Coco,' she said. 'If she's going to be there, I'm happy because I want to get the revenge!'. Sabalenka has been limbering up for the tournament by having a hit with both Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner, with the former happy to offer advice drawn from his vast experience. She said: 'Novak is the best. First of all, I was able to hit with him, which not every guy would be able to do. Then you can chat with him, he will give his honest advice. 'It's amazing to hear opinions of such a legend. We were just chatting about stuff that I'm struggling with a little bit. I'm really thankful for the advice he gave me. 'It was a 30-minute chat. If you give opportunity to Novak to talk, he's not going to stop! I wish I could stay there for four hours and just keep chatting, but we all have our schedule. 'Honestly, I hit with Jannik for like, I don't know, 10 minutes - I was exhausted! 'An hour with I'm recovered. I needed a day of recovery but it was a great experience. When you see someone like Jannik or Novak, you learn from them. You reflect what they do on court. It was great for me.' Gauff intends to shelve memories of her French Open triumph for the time being to focus on the tournament. She said: 'I'm very much someone who can look ahead very quickly. The first two days after I was just trying to really take it in. 'I'd rather just stay in the moment and think about this and kind of forget the French (Open), then revisit it maybe at the end of the season and celebrate it a little bit more. 'I've lost in the fourth round a few times, so I would love to get past that stage. I would say that's the next thing I'm looking forward to. 'I would love to win this, but I'm a big believer in just conquering one step at a time. If I get past that stage, then I'll start thinking about the winning.' Of the apology she received from Sabalenka after her post-French Open remarks, Gauff added: 'It was just water under the bridge. I know Aryna. 'I felt like before that we got along pretty well anyways before all that happened. It wasn't very hard to accept that apology.'
