Pachuca, out of the World Cup; lost 3-1 to Real Madrid

▲ In the image, Erling Haaland after scoring Manchester United's third goal. Photo AFP

▲ In the image, Vinicius Júnior (in white) showed off his talent against Pachuca. Photo AP

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, June 23, 2025, p. 9

Pachuca's outlook at the Club World Cup has been looking bleak for weeks, a situation that has only become clearer now that they have been eliminated after being thrashed 3-1 by Real Madrid, one of the most prestigious teams in the world and which celebrated its first victory – despite playing with a man down – under the command of one of its former stars, Xabi Alonso.

After an unexpected defeat in the first round of the competition, Xabi Alonso is now feeling confident having achieved his first victory since taking over the Madrid team just three weeks ago following the departure of Brazilian Carlo Ancelotti.

The meringues moved closer to the round of 16 by reaching four points and placing among the top positions in group H. The Tuzos, on the other hand, are experiencing an unfortunate reality by running out of points, being last in the group and being condemned to say goodbye to the Mundialito .

Even with the absence of striker Kylian Mbappé, who is sidelined with a gastrointestinal infection, a resounding victory for the Merengues seemed predictable given their elite players.

Not even the numerical disadvantage caused by Raúl Asencio's expulsion seven minutes into the game affected the Madridistas' attacking potential that characterizes them.

With just two strokes of the ball and in eight minutes, they had the duel secured. Briton Jude Bellingham (35) took charge of setting the course of the game with the first goal after a powerful left-footed shot.

Turkish player Arda Güler, one of the Madridistas' young gems, extended the lead to 43 minutes with a shot from inside the box after a combined play that broke through the Tuzos defense. Federico Valverde (70) sealed the victory by barely tapping the ball in after a precise pass from Brahim Diaz.

Thus, the Merengues lived up to their reputation as one of the favorites and the most successful team in the tournament's history under the previous format, in which only six clubs competed, in front of more than 70,000 fans at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.

It seems to be a contrasting story for Pachuca. Jaime Lozano was also fighting for his first win with the Tuzos, a club he joined less than three weeks ago following the unexpected departure of Guillermo Almada.

The highlight for Lozano and the Tuzos was taking the risk of facing the fearsome Real Madrid with a squad of young tricolor players such as Bryan González, Alan Bautista, Alexéi Domínguez, and Elías Montiel, who scored in the 80th minute and can now boast at 19 years of age of scoring a goal against the prestigious Real Madrid.

Cabral accused of racist behavior

The match was only marred when referee Ramón Abatti activated the protocol (90) against discriminatory and racist acts after an argument between the German of African descent Antonio Rüdiger, a Real Madrid defender, and Gustavo Cabral.

Reports indicate that Cabral insulted Rüdiger with the word "monkey ," leading Real Madrid to request an investigation.

Tony (Rüdiger) told us something, and we support him. I think the FIFA protocol was activated. If it happened, then measures will be taken. It's unacceptable. There's no tolerance for this in football, and if it happens, measures will be taken. We believe Antonio, and an investigation is underway , Alonso said after the game.

Jaime Lozano claimed to be unaware of what happened: "I just found out. I can't give you an explanation because it's the first time I've heard this ." Cabral said it was just an argument; the referee made a racist gesture, but there was nothing wrong with it. It's a word we use in Argentina .

With the goalless draw between Salzburg and Al Hilal, Madrid took the lead, while the Austrian team is second with four points and the Arab team is third with two.

Pachuca's final World Cup match will be on Thursday against Al-Hilal, while Real Madrid will look to secure their place against Salzburg.

Juventus and Citizens advance

In Sector G, Juventus and Manchester City secured their place in the round of 16 with a second victory.

The Old Lady thrashed Wydad Casablanca 4-1 with a double from Turkey's Kenan Yildiz to take the lead, and later the Citizens beat Al Ain 6-0 with a penalty from Norway's Erling Haaland.

▲ The Star-Spangled Banner could face Mexico in the next round. AP Photo

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, June 23, 2025, p. a10

The United States took the lead in Group D of the 2025 Gold Cup after defeating Haiti 2-1 in the third and final match of the group stage, played yesterday at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, with Mexican Katia Iztel González as referee.

Thanks to this victory, the team coached by Argentine Mauricio Pochettino, who remains undefeated in the tournament and had already secured their place in the quarterfinals, earned nine points to remain at the top. This means the United States could face Mexico in the next round if the Tricolors lose their match against Costa Rica.

Haiti, in turn, was eliminated after finishing in fourth and final place with one point.

The American team opened the scoring in the 10th minute when Malik Tillman headed in an assist from Patrick Agyemang in the center of the box to beat goalkeeper Johnny Placide and make it 1-0.

The hosts' advantage was short-lived, as just nine minutes later (19), Haiti tied the score (1-1) with a goal from Louicius Deedson. After the tie, both teams slowed down and failed to score before halftime.

In the second half, the United States thrilled their fans by invading the opposing goal three times; however, all goals were disallowed by Katia Itzel García, who was accompanied by fellow tricolors Sandra Ramírez and Karen Díaz. The first was for a handball in the box, and the other two were for offside.

It was not until the 75th minute that the home side managed to increase their scoring lead (2-1), after Agyemang took advantage of a pass from John Tolkin in the area to pierce the opposing goal with a powerful left-footed shot.

In the final stretch, the United States went on the attack in search of an additional lead; however, they were unable to score another goal and took a 2-1 victory.

In the other Group D match, played at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Saudi Arabia salvaged a valuable 1-1 draw against Trinidad and Tobago, finishing second with four points and securing their place in the quarterfinals.

The Trinidadians were eliminated from the competition after finishing in third place with two points.

Trinidad and Tobago took the lead in the 10th minute with a goal from Dante Sealy, but the Saudis equalized (1-1) in the 60th minute through Feras Al-Brikan.