Associated Press
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Kylian Mbappe’s spectacular bicycle kick was among three goals in second-half stoppage time, and Real Madrid beat Borussia Dortmund 3-2 in a Club World Cup quarterfinal match on Saturday as goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois used his fingertips to palm away the potential tying goal on the game’s final play.
Gonzalo Garcia and Fran Garcia scored in the first 20 minutes as Madrid built a 2-0 lead.
Dortmund’s Maximilian Beier scored three minutes into stoppage time and Mbappé, who entered in the 67th, restored a two-goal lead with his bicycle kick one minute later.
Serhou Guirassy converted a penalty kick in the eighth minute of added time after he was fouled by Dean Huijsen, who received a red card and will miss the semifinals.
Courtois used all of the lengthy arm on his 6-foot-7 frame to tip away Marcel Sabitzer’s shot just before the final whistle.
Madrid advanced to a semifinal match against Champions League winner Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday, a day after Chelsea meets Brazilian club Fluminense.
On a sunny afternoon with an 86-degree (30-degree Celsius) temperature at the 3 p.m. kickoff, Gonzalo Garcia scored in the 10th minute and Fran García in the 20th.
Gonzalo García, a 21-year-old who made only five Spanish league appearances in the past two seasons, was given the start by new Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso over Mbappé, still regaining fitness after acute gastroenteritis. García has four goals, tying Benfica’s Angel Di Maria and Al Hilal’s Marcos Leonardo for the tournament lead.
Mbappé came on for Jude Bellingham, who missed a chance to play against his brother Jobe, who was suspended for yellow-card accumulation.
Madrid beat Dortmund 2-0 in the 2024 Champions League final and overcame a two-goal halftime deficit in a 5-2 victory of this season’s league phase. Los Blancos were eliminated by Arsenal in this year’s Champions League quarterfinals.
Madrid has won five consecutive games against Dortmund and is unbeaten in seven since a 2014 Champions League quarterfinal defeat.
American midfielder Gio Reyna didn’t get off the bench and finished the tournament with one 13-minute appearance for Dortmund in five matches.
This game drew 76,611 to MetLife Stadium, site of next year’s World Cup final. Seats looked filled, except for a completely empty suite level on one side.
There was a moment of silence before kickoff for Liverpool’s Diogo Jota and his brother, Penafiel’s Andre Silva, who died in a car crash Thursday.
Key moment
Courtois’ final save on the game’s final play to preserve the victory.
Takeaways
Construction to remove seats in the corners enabled a 74-by-114-yard (68-by-105-meter) field, wider than for matches during the 2016 and 2024 Copa America tournaments.
They said it
“We are so lucky that we have Thibaut on goal because Thibault is one of those keepers that makes you win games and today that save has been so decisive.” — Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso.
“It is a great big save. That’s the reason why he is the best goalkeeper in the world. … To be honest, it’s a deserved win from Real Madrid. … We showed all our qualities and now it’s not a failure if you go home after defeat against Real Madrid.” — Dortmund coach Niko Kovač.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
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