Palmeiras 2-0 El Ahly Cairo: Abou Ali gets an own goal, José Manuel López nets

A ninth clean sheet from their last 12 matches helped Palmeiras seize control of Group A in the FIFA Club World Cup (CWC), as they beat Al Ahly 2-0 at MetLife Stadium.

Match Report

Group A stood totally goalless after matchday one, and there were very few signs that goals would flow here in a cagey first half. Al Ahly were the better side, but their play continually broke down upon reaching the final third.

Palmeiras appeared reluctant to commit players forward, leaving the likes of the livewire Estêvão to shoulder the burden on his own. The Chelsea-bound winger had the first clear sight at goal after picking the ball up on the right and driving inside past two defenders, but he dragged his shot narrowly wide of the near post.

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The contingent of Palmeiras fans grew increasingly frustrated as half time approached, but they were breathing a sigh of relief when Raphael Veiga - celebrating his 30th birthday - was initially shown a red card for a high challenge on Zizo.

After a VAR review, referee Anthony Taylor overturned the decision and instead awarded a yellow card, but that wasn’t enough to earn Veiga the second half as he was replaced as part of a double change by Palmeiras boss Abel Ferreira. 

Those alterations should’ve immediately paid dividends, but Flaco López somehow missed his kick when presented with a tap-in on the six-yard line from Joaquín Piquerez’s cross. The Verdão weren’t waiting long for another chance, and this time the ball did end up in the back of the net in fortuitous circumstances.

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Anibal Moreno delivered a free-kick from the left into a dangerous area, where in his efforts to clear, Al Ahly striker Wessam Abou Ali directed a header past his own goalkeeper.

The Brazilians were armed with momentum, and nearly doubled their lead when Moreno’s free-kick almost caught Mohamed El Shenawy off guard.

He reacted well to tip over the bar on that occasion, but there was nothing the Al Ahly stopper could do in the 59th minute, however, when López atoned for his earlier miss by clinically finishing into the bottom corner after an incisive Palmeiras counter-attack.

Al Ahly were on the ropes, but respite came their way in the form of a lengthy delay due to adverse weather in the area. 

Once play resumed, Palmeiras remained on top, and though they failed to add to their lead, their two-goal margin was more than enough to see them over the line to victory.

They need just one more point to guarantee their place in the quarter-finals, while Al Ahly’s second loss from their last 14 matches inside 90 minutes gives them an uphill task to progress.

Man of the Match: Anibal Moreno (Palmeiras)

Match Events

49' OWN GOAL! Palmeiras 1-0 El Ahly Cairo (Wessam Abou Ali)

59' GOAL! Palmeiras 2-0 El Ahly Cairo (José Manuel López)

Line-ups

Palmeiras XI: Weverton, G.Gómez, Joaquín Piquerez, Raphael Veiga, Murilo, Facundo Torres, Aníbal Moreno, Richard Ríos, Vitor Roque, Agustín Giay, Estêvão

Subs: Marcelo Lomba, Marcos Rocha, Anderson, Mayke, Evangelista, Bruno Fuchs, Paulinho, Mauricio, Emiliano Martínez, Vanderlan, José Manuel López, Micael, Allan, Thalys, Luighi

El Ahly Cairo XI: Mohamed El Shenawy, Trezeguet, Yasser Ibrahim, Zizo, Mohamed Hany, Hamdy Fathy, Wessam Abou Ali, Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane, Achraf Dari, Yahia Attiyat Allah, Marwan Ateya

Subs: Omar Kamal, Achraf Bencharki, Aliou Dieng, Hussein El Shahat, Ahmed Ramadan, Afsha, Oufa Shobeir, Khaled Abdelfattah, Nejc Gradisar, Karim El Debes, Ahmed Kouka, Mostafa El Aash, Mostafa Makhlouf, Mohamed Seha, Ahmed Reda