The Club World Cup kicks off on Wednesday and for the second year running it is being held in Morocco.
Since the inaugural competition in 2000, when Manchester United sunned themselves on Brazilian beaches, pulled out of the FA Cup and then romped to the league title, the Club World Cup has evolved and while United were an unmitigated disaster on the pitch 14 years ago, European teams have come to dominate.
Corinthians’ victory in 2012, when Chelsea were defeated in the final, aside, the Club World Cup has been the preserve of Europe’s Champions League winners since 2007 – Bayern Munich the most recent champions – and Real Madrid go into the competition as favourites. Here we take a look at the six other clubs looking to cause an upset and how they can plot a route to the final on 20 December in Marrakesh.
Moghreb Tétouan, Morocco
Qualifying as the champions of Morocco, Moghreb Tétouan will be looking to follow in the footsteps of Raja Casablanca, who progressed to the final last year, before succumbing to Bayern. They kick off the tournament with the play-off to reach the quarter-finals against Auckland City and do so on the back of some pretty average domestic form – a problem their striker Mouhcine Iajour puts down to the expectation surrounding the Club World Cup. Fortunately for Tétouan, Iajour starred for Raja in last year’s competition before making his switch to the champions. “I hope to get Cristiano Ronaldo’s jersey because he’s the best player in the world,” he said. “If that match does come around, then there’s no way I’m not changing my shirt with him.”
Auckland City, New Zealand
Seasoned campaigners – Auckland’s sixth appearance is a competition record – but the New Zealanders, who qualify virtue of their victory in the OFC Champions League, are looking to make it into the quarter-finals for only the second time. Coached by the Spaniard Ramon Tribulietx, Auckland won the inaugural OFC President’s Cup last month, and have the former Blackburn Rovers midfielder Tim Payne among their ranks. Payne has been quick to heap the pressure on Wednesday’s opponents. “Playing at home gives any team a massive lift so for us going to Morocco to face Tétouan is going to be tough. But, again, this is a one-off game and anything can happen,” he said.
ES Setif, Algeria
Awaiting the winners of Wednesday’s curtain-raiser, Setif are looking to back up Algeria’s promising showing in the summer’s World Cup in Brazil, where they became the only African country to reach the knockout stages. Taking their place in Morocco thanks to a second CAF Champions League title – 26 years after their first – Setif have set their sights on reaching the semi-finals but fatigue might be a problem. They have played eight matches in the Algerian league in 28 days but the manager, Kheireddine Madoui, remains bullish. “We will play the tournament without any pressure, but we will play with big a desire to make Algerian football proud,” he said.
Cruz Azul, Mexico
Making their first appearance, the Mexican side Cruz Azul celebrated their sixth Concacaf Champions League in April but they have had little to cheer since and their most recent domestic campaign saw them end up down in 13th spot. In Luis Fernando Tena they have a manager who, against the odds guided Mexico to Olympic Games gold at London 2012, orchestrating the victory in the final over Brazil at Wembley. The goalkeeper Jesús Corona remembers well Tena’s impact at the Olympics and hopes he can have a similar effect in Morocco, starting with their quarter-final against Western Sydney Wanderers. “The team talk he gave us before the final against Brazil really pumped us up,” Corona said. “He told us to go for it and that a lot of people would remember us for many years to come, which filled us with pride. It’s the same thing here.”
Western Sydney Wanderers, Australia
Winners of the AFC Champions League, Western Sydney Wanderers’ preparations for Morocco have been dominated by a threatened boycott of the competition because of a pay dispute. Apparently, club officials have offered their players a 10% share of the money received for qualifying but the squad, rooted to the foot of the A-League, want more. As it stands, Western Sydney are due to face Cruz Azul in the quarter-finals on 13 December in Rabat but that seems anything but certain. Victory over the Mexican opponents would pave the way for a semi-final with Real Madrid, something the defender Matt Spiranovic spoke passionately about last month. He said: “If we were able to step into the same pitch as Real Madrid it would be a dream come true for a lot of the boys.”
San Lorenzo, Argentina
Entering the competition at the semi-final stage and widely viewed as Real Madrid’s nearest challengers, San Lorenzo won their first Copa Libertadores title earlier this year with victory over Club Nacional of Paraguay in the final and ending Brazilian clubs’ four-year dominance in the process. They boast few household names but did recruit the Colombia defender Mario Yepes after his World Cup heroics. “We’re a team of fighters. We keep on battling until the very last minute, and we need to take that spirit with us to Morocco,” the 38-year-old Yepes said.
Real Madrid, Spain
The champions of Europe need no introduction and are as short as 1-6 with some bookmakers to lift the title. Currently on the back of an 19-match winning streak and with Cristiano Ronaldo having scored 32 goals this season for club and country, Real’s main obstacle would appear to be complacency. James Rodríguez is likely to be missing but Ronaldo and Toni Kroos will be bidding for their second World Club Cup titles. The right-back Dani Carvajal says there will be no taking it easy in Morocco. “It’s a dream for me to compete in it because of how hard it is to qualify and I’ll try to enjoy it as much as possible,” he said. “I’d be special to win it but it won’t be easy.”
Club World Cup fixtures
Play-off: Moghreb Tétouan v Auckland City, 10 December
Quarter-final 1: Es Setif v winner of play-off, 13 December
Quarter-final 2: Cruz Azul v West Sydney Warriors, 13 December
Semi-final 1: winner of quarter-final 2 v Real Madrid, 16 December
Semi-final 2: winner of quarter-final 1 v San Lorenzo, 17 December
Fifth place play-off: loser of quarter-final 1 v loser of quarter-final 2, 17 December
Third place play-off: loser of semi-final 1 v loser of semi-final 2, 20 December
Final: winner of semi-final 1 v winner of semi-final 2, 20 December
