Madrid ready for 'really big challenge'

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey — Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso said Saturday he was looking forward to seeing how his new team measures up to European champion Paris Saint-Germain after the sides set up a semifinal showdown at the Club World Cup.

Real beat Borussia Dortmund 3-2 in their last-eight tie at the MetLife Stadium, a few hours after PSG defeated Bayern Munich 2-0.

The Spanish giant and the French champion will now clash at the Met-Life Stadium in the semifinals on Wednesday, and whoever emerges victorious will be seen as favorite to go on and win the competition.

"Today we played against a team who went far in the Champions League and now we face the winners, so this is going to be another little step up for us in this new project we are beginning," said Alonso, who replaced Carlo Ancelotti as Real coach just ahead of the tournament.

PSG, coached by Luis Enrique, succeeded Madrid as European champion after hammering Inter Milan 5-0 in the Champions League final in Munich in late May.

"They have been playing at a really high level since the last 16 of the Champions League, and it will be a really big challenge for us."

Real appeared to be cruising to a comfortable victory against Dortmund after goals in the first 20 minutes by young striker Gonzalo Garcia and left-back Fran Garcia.

But Maximilian Beier pulled one back for Dortmund in stoppage time, sparking a remarkable late flurry that saw Kylian Mbappe net an overhead kick and Serhou Guirassy score a penalty for the Germans after Real center-back Dean Huijsen was sent off.

"We can do better, but overall it was a very serious performance, and now we need to take the positives from this," said Alonso, who will have to do without Huijsen against PSG due to suspension.

"The game has just ended, so I am not yet thinking about the semis. I will have a couple of hours of peace, but obviously it is not good news to have lost Huijsen."

Mbappe pushing to start

Alonso may now have another selection headache in attack, with Mbappe — used as a substitute on Saturday — pushing for a first start of the tournament against his old club after overcoming illness.

"He is still not perfect, not at 100 percent, but he is improving every day," Alonso said of the France superstar after he scored his 44th goal for the club since signing from PSG a year ago.

Gonzalo Garcia, meanwhile, has had a fine Club World Cup, with the 21-year-old striker notching four goals in five appearances off the back of a prolific campaign with the Madrid second team, Castilla.

"Yesterday (Friday), I said that Gonzalo was making the most of his opportunity, and he did it again today," Alonso said.

"He has the characteristics of a goalscorer, he had a great season with Castilla, scoring 25 goals, and he is in the right place here."

Meanwhile, Dortmund coach Niko Kovac insisted he was satisfied with his team's performance at the tournament, despite its defeat, as it now gets to take a holiday before preparing for the start of the next German Bundesliga season.

"I want to congratulate Real Madrid for going through. It is a well-deserved victory. We were too slow, the conditions were not perfect, and we were not good enough, even if in the second half we were a lot better," he said.

"Overall, my team had a good tournament. We showed our qualities, and it is not a failure if you go home after a defeat against Real Madrid," he added.

AFP