Real Madrid were held to a 1-1 draw by Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal in new coach Xabi Alonso’s managerial debut at the Club World Cup on Wednesday, as Manchester City opened with a win.
Federico Valverde saw his stoppage-time penalty saved, denying Los Blancos a late victory in front of 62,415 fans at Hard Rock Stadium, many of them draped in white.
In the late kickoff, Juventus put on a show in Washington, routing Al-Ain 5-0 just hours after visiting U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House.
“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.
The former Bayer Leverkusen coach handed debuts to new signings Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dean Huijsen in defense, but Real were without Kylian Mbappé due to illness.
Gonzalo Garcia started in his place and the 21-year-old seized his chance, opening the scoring just after the half-hour mark off a Rodrygo assist.
Al-Hilal hit back in their new coach Simone Inzaghi’s first game on the bench, with Ruben Neves leveling before the break from the penalty spot following a Raul Asencio foul.
Real had the chance to claim victory in stoppage time after Mohammed al-Qahtani was ruled to have put his hand in the face of Fran Garcia in the box.
However, Valverde’s spot kick was saved by Yassine Bounou to give the Saudi team a draw after a hugely creditable performance.
RB Salzburg took the lead in Group H with a 2-1 win over Mexican club Pachuca in Cincinnati.
The match was suspended early in the second half with the Austrian team leading 1-0 because of a storm, then resumed 97 minutes later.
Foden stars
In Philadelphia, Phil Foden and Jeremy Doku scored first-half goals as Pep Guardiola’s City eased to a 2-0 win against Morocco’s Wydad Casablanca 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 added the second from a Foden corner shortly before halftime in a game played in sweaty early afternoon conditions in front of 37,446 fans at Lincoln Financial Field.
The afternoon was slightly marred for City as Rico Lewis was sent off for a dangerous tackle late on, but Guardiola was satisfied with the start as his side looks to bounce back from a difficult previous season.
“It is so hot. The humidity is not easy. We had good moments, many new players. The first game in this group stage is always really, really important. I saw many, many good things,” said Guardiola, who suggested he will make sweeping changes for the next match against Al-Ain in Atlanta on Sunday.
“We are going to train well in the next few days and then fresh legs for the next game to try to improve things,” Guardiola added.
“We have a lot of new players, injured players back, and step by step we will get to the right tempo.”
Juve dominant
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 commanding win over UAE side Al Ain at Audi Field.
On-loan Paris Saint-Germain forward Randal Kolo Muani and Francisco Conceicao each scored twice, while Kenan Yildiz was also on target.
“I’m delighted for my goals, but first and foremost for the team’s win,” said Conceicao, on loan from Porto, in an interview with DAZN.
“We started the game well, and that’s what we wanted to do – to win this opening match. Now we need to kick on.”
The second round of group games begins Thursday, with matches including Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami against Porto and European champion Paris Saint-Germain facing Copa Libertadores winner Botafogo.
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