For more than 90 minutes, it had been a relatively straightforward match.
Real Madrid was outclassing Borussia Dortmund at MetLife Stadium on Saturday, much to the delight of a crowd of 76,611 heavily in its favor for a FIFA Club World Cup quarterfinal.
Then all heck broke loose in extra time, the eventual result of which was a 3-2 victory for Real Madrid after it had led 2-0 most of the match.
The teams combined for three goals after the 90-minute mark — and it almost was four.
But in the final seconds, Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois dove to get a piece with his right hand of a shot by Dortmund’s Marcel Sabitzer that was on target to tie the score.
What was Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso thinking as the play unfolded?
“I thought we are so lucky that we have Thibaut on goal, because he’s always one of those keepers that makes you win games,” Alonso said.
Dortmund manager Niko Kovac felt similarly.
“That’s the reason why he’s the best goalkeeper in the world,” Kovac said of Courtois. “You must be there when the team needs you. This was a big, big, big save.”
Real Madrid is a major world power, and it advanced to a dream semifinal on Wednesday at MetLife against Paris Saint-Germain in a match featuring the past two Champions League winners and two of soccer’s biggest brands.
On Tuesday, Chelsea meets Fluminense of Brazil in the first semifinal, providing the event a non-European flavor in the final four to make it seem more like a true world championship.
The final is next Sunday.
This tournament, the first of its kind in this format, has been a source of great debate in the soccer world, where many have pooh-poohed it as a cynical, unnecessary money grab by FIFA that has overextended soccer stars in what should be their offseason.
There were plenty of empty seats earlier in the tournament, and ticket prices have varied wildly as FIFA used a dynamic pricing plan.
Take Tuesday’s semifinal, which is the less attractive of the two in marketing terms. What had been a ticket that cost several hundred dollars has plummeted in cost.
As of Saturday evening, one could buy a ticket on the primary market for as little as $13.40.
But the good news for FIFA was that Saturday’s game had a festive atmosphere, helped by Real Madrid, which consistently has been the biggest draw of the tournament.
If nothing else, the tournament should be a useful dry run in advance of the traditional, national-team World Cup that North America will host next year.
MetLife was chosen to host the final of that tournament, so everything from the grass field being used for the Club World Cup to fan logistics is under scrutiny this summer.
All told MetLife will host nine games during the current tournament.
Real Madrid scored in the 10th and 20th minutes on goals by Gonzalo Garcia and Fran Garcia.
The first was a vindication for Alonso, who chose to start Gonzalo Garcia, 21, over Kylian Mbappe, one of the sport’s biggest stars.
Fans got an added thrill in the 67th minute when Mbappe entered the game for an extended cameo. He had missed the group stage with a stomach flu.
Maximilian Beier scored for Dortmund in the third minute of stoppage time, then Mbappe restored the two-goal lead in the fourth minute with a brilliant, airborne kick.
In the eighth minute of stoppage time, Serhou Guirassy scored on a penalty kick, and it was 3-2. Soon thereafter came Courtois’ heroics.
“To be honest, it’s a deserved win for Real Madrid,” Kovac said. “If we scored this [tying goal], it will be a little bit unfair. Overall, I think my team, we did a good tournament. We showed our qualities . . . It’s not a failure if you go home after a defeat against Real Madrid.”
