Real Madrid are through to the quarter-finals of the Club World Cup after a hard-fought 1-0 win over Juventus on Tuesday. Academy graduate Gonzalo Garcia scored the only goal of the match early in the second half, while Kylian Mbappe made his long-awaited debut in the tournament.
Garcia stepped up once again, filling in for Mbappe, who missed the group stage due to illness. In the 54th minute, the young forward found the net with a powerful header from Trent Alexander-Arnold’s accurate cross. It was Garcia’s third goal in the tournament.
Mbappe came on as a second-half substitute and received a loud cheer from the packed crowd at Hard Rock Stadium. Fans chanted his name as the French star warmed up. While he got into some good positions, his teammates couldn’t connect well with him. His appearance looked more like a light run-out than a game-changing moment.
Juventus had a few chances in the first half but struggled to maintain pressure. Randal Kolo Muani came close with a clever chip in the seventh minute, narrowly missing the target. Kenan Yildiz also tried from distance but couldn’t find the goal.
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Real Madrid, coached by Xabi Alonso and playing in a 3-4-3 formation, started slowly but gained momentum. Jude Bellingham tested Juve’s keeper Michele Di Gregorio with a sharp strike, but the Italian shot-stopper made a fine save.
Federico Valverde also forced Di Gregorio into action just before halftime with a thunderous long-range effort. Juventus had to thank their keeper for keeping them in the game for so long.
In the second half, Real Madrid turned up the pressure. Di Gregorio denied Bellingham and Dean Huijsen in quick succession. But he had no answer when Garcia’s header gave Real the lead.
Even after the goal, Di Gregorio continued to shine. He kept Juventus alive with a brilliant reflex save to stop a bicycle kick from Valverde.
