CLUB WORLD CUP
Club World Cup in Morocco: A clash of record-holders holds again after 22 years
Seven time Club World Cup holders, Real Madrid are set to face 10-time African champions, Al Ahly of Egypt this Wednesday in the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup in Rabat.
This is potentially an epic clash. But it is not the first encounter of the two teams. Before this match-up, both had met 22 years ago in 2001 and Al Ahly were winners by an odd goal.
It was at the ocassion of Al Ahly being proclaimed as the African ‘Club of the Century’. At the time, Real Madrid were the European champions.
But as Egypt’s Ahram puts it, 2001 was not one of the Real Madrid’s best years. They had endured their worst domestic league performance under Vicente del Bosque’s management, finishing only third in the league standings as well as losing the Copa del Rey final at the Bernabéu to unheralded Deportivo La Coruna.
In addition, they were narrowly knocked out by Bayern Munich in the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League, their signature tournament and the reason for their enormous fame and success.
However, they had begun a new policy of signing the world’s greatest players, one every year, under new president Florentino Perez with a goal of making Real Madrid the most fashionable club in the world. They were dubbed the Galacticos.
They had just augmented their strike force by signing French midfield star Zinedine Zidane for a then record $90 million four-year contract from Juventus on instalments. Zidane had just signed for Real, making his appearance in Cairo a pleasant surprise.
A flag-waving crowd of nearly 70,000 in Cairo Stadium saw Ahly weather an early storm as Claude Makelele went close for Real at the start of the match. Roberto Carlos let fly with one of his trademark cannon shots which goalkeeper Essam Al-Hadari did well to even see it.
Zidane whiffed at a clear opportunity in front of the goal.
Ahly came out for the second half determined to push back Real. They created several chances with Alaa Ibrahim and Khaled Bebo hitting the bar.
The goal came 10 minutes after the break after Bebo launched a counter attacking solo run before passing to Hossam Ghali who rounded Real goalkeeper Cesar before slipping the ball to newly signed Nigerian import Ibrahim Sunday who slotted into an empty net.
Real’s two superstars Zidane and Luis Figo failed to make an impression and were both substituted in the second half.
Zidane, Figo, Carlos, Raul, Makelele, Salgado, captain Fernando Hierro and all the other dream team members went down 1-0.
Manuel Jose of Portugal, who would go on to become Ahly’s winningest coach ever, marked his first victory with Ahly.
CLUB WORLD CUP
Referees’ body cameras will provide fans with unprecedented views of on-field action, says FIFA
FIFA unveiled its team of 117 match officials, opens new tab on Monday for the inaugural Club World Cup and said referees would wear body cameras and enforce stricter goalkeeper time-wasting rules at the tournament to be staged across the United States.
The FIFA Referees Committee appointed the officials from 41 member associations – 35 referees, 58 assistant referees and 24 video match officials – for the June 14 to July 13 event.
Body cameras will provide fans with unprecedented views of on-field action, FIFA said, while goalkeepers who hold the ball beyond eight seconds will now see opponents awarded corner kicks rather than indirect free kicks.
“We think that it is a good chance to offer the viewers a new experience, in terms of images taken from a perspective, from an angle of vision, which was never offered before,” said Pierluigi Collina, chairman of the FIFA Referees Committee.
“It also has a purpose in terms of referee coaching because, of course, having the possibility to see what the referee sees is important in the debriefing.”
Collina highlighted the historic nature of the appointments for the expanded tournament featuring 32 teams from all six FIFA confederations and spanning 12 stadiums in 11 U.S. host cities.
“The selected referees are among those who have the privilege to be part of this for the first time, so I’m sure that all the match officials will be thrilled,” he said.
“We are coming from high-standard performances delivered during the last FIFA tournaments. So the bar is higher and when you set the bar higher it’s more difficult to keep the standard. But we are working very hard and ‘Team One’ will make a solid contribution to the success of this exciting competition.”
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The expanded Club World Cup holding in the US has brought another innovation to football.
Referees at the championship holding from June 14 to July 13 will be equipped with body cameras and will implement a new rule to combat goalkeeper time-wasting.
Game directors will wear “body cameras as part of an experimental phase, the tests having been approved by IFAB ,” the body that oversees the rules of the game, the International Football Federation explained in a statement.
“We believe this is a good opportunity to offer viewers a new experience, with images taken from a perspective that has never been offered before,” explained FIFA Referees Committee chairman Pierluigi Collina.
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The change in football rules that allows goalkeepers to be punished with corner kicks will be implemented at the Club World Cup holding in June in the US.
The revelation was made by FIFA Referees Committee chairman Pierluigi Collina after the announcement that referees will wear body cameras.
This initiative is “both innovative for broadcasters and for referee training,” added the Italian, “because it is important to be able to put yourself in the referee’s shoes during the debriefing, to evaluate how the referee made his decisions, his point of view, etc. “
The competition will implement the new rule approved by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) on March 1, aimed at reducing time wastage by goalkeepers.
“If they hold the ball for more than eight seconds, the referee will award a corner. Previously, an indirect free kick could be awarded after six seconds.
Seminars for referees have been held recently. The one for UEFA referees was held at FIFA headquarters from March 31 to April 4. Another seminar was held in Dubai for referees from the AFC (Asia), CAF (Africa), and OFC (Oceania) from February 2 to 4, and a third for referees from CONMEBOL (South America) and CONCACAF (Central America and the Caribbean) took place in Buenos Aires from February 24 to 28.
“We need to see the game and the goals, not the refereeing,” said refereeing director Massimo Busacca. “The referee is the protagonist who should not be noticed during the match. A good referee doesn’t need to be seen or known. But he must be prepared. “
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