EUROPEAN champions Real Madrid advanced to the final of the Club World Cup following a 4-1 win against Al Ahly in Rabat.

The game wasn’t as one-sided as the scoreline suggests. Real’s goals came from Vinicius Junior, Federico Valverde, Rodrygo and Sergio Arribas, while Luka Modric saw a penalty saved by Mohamed El Shenawy, but the Egyptian side, having defeated Auckland City and Seattle Sounders to get this far, created plenty of chances of their own.

Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti recognised his team were not at their best, but their troubles were also a result of some good play from Ahly.

“We were good for an hour but then thought the game was over when it was 2-0,” Ancelotti said in his post-match press conference.

“Football doesn’t work like that. We need to be much better when we are in that kind of situation.

“We need to focus until the end. The game became open but we finished it off well. I wouldn’t say we won it completely calmly, but we controlled it fairly well.”

Real will face reigning Asian Champions League champions Al-Hilal in the final after the Saudi Arabian club shocked Brazilian giants Flamengo in the other semifinal in Tangier.

Forward Salem al-Dawsari, who had scored the winning goal in Saudi Arabia’s memorable group game victory against Argentina at the recent World Cup, scored twice from the spot and assisted another goal for Luciano Vietto in a 3-2 win.

Malian former Porto striker Moussa Marega also posed a threat on the counter-attack for Al-Hilal, and if they can take chances where Al Ahly couldn’t, Real Madrid could find themselves in for another difficult game.

This said, the scoreline ended up 4-1 due to Real’s extra quality both on the pitch and on the bench. Luka Modric was given a free role by Ancelotti, regularly dropping deep from a starting position alongside Brazilian forward Rodrygo in the front two.

Real should be overwhelming favourites to lift the trophy in Saturday evening’s game, but the performances of Al-Hilal and Al Ahly, and a first appearance for a US side, Seattle Sounders, have shown intercontinental football can be competitive and interesting.

“The final of this tournament used to always be the European team against the South American team, but football is changing and for the better,” added Ancelotti.

“Clubs from around the world can all compete and win. Al Hilal have earned the right to be here. They’ll be motivated and we will be too.”

The third-place game was originally scheduled to be played at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Rabat as a curtain-raiser for the final, but it has been moved to Tangier as a standalone match to, according to Fifa, “preserve the pitch of Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium for the final on the same day, and to guarantee the sporting quality of both remaining games for players and spectators.”

This change might also be due to Flamengo’s unexpected participation in the third-place game rather than the final, and their large following.

The size of the clubs involved in this tournament can perhaps be underestimated in English-language football coverage, as achievements of teams outside of Europe can often go under the radar.

This Club World Cup, though fairly under the radar itself in Europe, has shown how much these games mean to some of those involved.

Flamengo showed this via their disappointment in defeat, and Al-Hilal in their celebrations after reaching the final.

Amid constant talk of expansion and often needless alterations to domestic and continental competitions, this tournament has shown one area that perhaps merits some expansion is the game at intercontinental level.