BIG clubs meeting in big matches. That’s the recent history for Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, who continue their rivalry in a Club World Cup quarterfinal on Saturday at East Rutherford, N.J.
Real Madrid recorded a 5-2 win over Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League in October 2024, four months after they defeated the German side 2-0 in the final of 2023-24 Champions League.
Add in that Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso knows Dortmund very well after coaching their Bundesliga rival Bayern Leverkusen from October 2022 until the end of last season, and the match has extra spice.
“We know (Alonso) very well. He worked 2 1/2 years in Germany, and he did a fantastic job,“ Dortmund coach Niko Kovac said. “Now he’s implementing everything he had at Bayern Leverkusen at Real Madrid. So, we’re expecting the same of what we had in Leverkusen, only with different players.
“We’re looking forward to it, but you have to play football for 90 minutes, and if we put everything on to the pitch, I think that we will have a good chance.”
The winner plays in a semifinal against Paris Saint-Germain or Bayern Munich in East Rutherford on Wednesday.
Real Madrid will look to Kylian Mbappe, who made his tournament debut vs. Juventus in the Round of 16 after being out with an illness.
Fortunately, Gonzalo Garcia was more than adequate as a replacement, netting three goals in the tournament.
“We feel good,“ Alonso said. “After getting past the group stage and Juventus, you want to keep taking steps, and the next one is a quarterfinal with Dortmund, a top team in Europe, one that is always competing in the Champions League and recently played in the final, of course against Madrid.
“It is going to be an intense match, one in which we need to play at a good level, and so we’re up for it.”
Real Madrid will have to keep an eye on Serhou Guirassy, who scored twice in 10 minutes vs. Monterrey in the previous match, giving him three goals in the tournament.
What will be missing is a matchup of the Bellingham brothers — Real Madrid midfielder Jude and Dortmund midfielder Jobe, who is suspended because of yellow-card accumulation after being cautioned vs. Monterrey.
“I think it will be a difficult match,“ Jude Bellingham said. “We have already played against them, but they have changed a little. … They’ve improved. It’ll be a very exciting match.”
