The Club World Cup finals are gathering pace. After Palmeiras and Chelsea qualified yesterday and Paris Saint-Germain this Sunday, Flamengo and Bayern Munich met again to secure their place in the quarterfinals to face the Parisians. For this match, the Brazilians, coached by Filipe Luis, lined up in a 4-2-3-1 formation with familiar names like left-back Alex Sandro, who played for Juventus. Jorginho, formerly of Napoli, Chelsea, and Arsenal, formed the double pivot with Erick Pulgar, who had played for Fiorentina. Behind Gonzalo Plata, there was star Giorgian De Arrascaeta, with former Marseille player Gerson and former Lille player Luiz Araujo alongside him. Bayern Munich opted for a classic 4-2-3-1 with Jonathan Tah and Dayot Upamecano in defense. Up front, Harry Kane was supported by Michael Olise, Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman.
And this match was not for fans who lack punctuality, quite the contrary, it started with a bang. Very quickly, Bayern Munich imposed their law and Joshua Kimmich distinguished himself with a long shot blocked for a corner (5th). The German midfielder would kick it and his cross surprised Erick Pulgar who would unfortunately deflect into the back of his own net (1-0, 6th). Surprised from the start, Flamengo went back to attack and Gonzalo Plata crossed for Giorgian De Arrascaeta whose attempt did not find the target (7th). Just after, Bayern Munich would punish again with a shot from Harry Kane full axis just in front of the Brazilian box. His shot would hit the post before ending up in the back of the net (2-0, 10th). With their backs to the wall, Flamengo didn't give up and, following a pass from Giorgian De Arrascaeta on the right, Luiz Araujo thought he could cut it back with a shot to the far post, but Manuel Neuer saved with a monstrous save (16'). Unlucky, the former Lille player then fired a volley that missed the target (32').
Harry Kane crucified Flamengo
But the Brazilian efforts were not in vain. On a cross from the left, Giorgian De Arrascaeta distinguished himself with a clever backheel towards the penalty spot for Gerson. The former Olympique de Marseille player went on to explode Manuel Neuer's goal with a missile under the crossbar (2-1, 33rd). And while we could have expected a revival from Flamengo and doubts from Bavaria, the Rekordmeister would do the trick again. On a poor clearance from Luiz Araujo, Leon Goretzka intercepted with his chest and followed up with a heavy shot that lodged to the left of AgustÃn Rossi's goal (3-1, 42nd). A nice halftime advantage for the German team. After the break, Flamengo did not appear stunned and played their luck bravely, and Michael Olise conceded a penalty after a handball in the box.
Jorginho then kicked the penalty to reduce the deficit with a perfect counterattack (3-2, 55th). This reaction offered Flamengo opportunities to equalize, like Luiz Araujo's counterattack where Konrad Laimer intercepted in front of Gerson (57th), but Bayern were not to be outdone with an off-target header from Harry Kane (64th) and two opportunities wasted by substitute Leroy Sané (69th and 71st). Finally, the Bavarians were going to put themselves out of harm's way with a sublime central ball between the lines from Joshua Kimmich to Harry Kane. The English striker would crucify AgustÃn Rossi without the slightest hesitation (4-2, 73rd). Bayern Munich had done the hardest part and Michael Olise on the counterattack got mixed up when it came to driving the nail in (86th). The Bavarians gave themselves a scare, but with this 4-2 victory, they secured the essentials and joined Paris Saint-Germain in the quarter-finals.
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