Alexander-Arnold shines as Real reach Club World Cup quarter-finals

In the 54th minute of the match at Hard Rock Stadium, Trent Alexander-Arnold received the ball on the right wing and then made an accurate cross for Gonazlo Garcia to jump up and head the ball from close range, defeating goalkeeper Di Gregorio.

Trent had his first assist since joining Real, while the 2004-born youngster Garcia did an excellent job replacing Kylian Mbappe with three goals in four games at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.

Real have advanced to the round of 16 for the 14th time in their last 17 cup competitions. Xabi Alonso's side will face the winner of the match between Dortmund and Sergio Ramos' Monterrey in the quarter-finals.

Real Madrid showed their mettle in the big match.

The most anticipated match of the FIFA Club World Cup round of 16 did not go as expected by fans. Both Real Madrid and Juventus were cautious, causing the first half to pass quite slowly.

Juventus only had two notable chances. In the 8th minute, Kolo Muani used his speed to break the offside trap. However, when facing Thibaut Courtois, the former PSG striker lobbed the ball over the bar. Not long after, it was Kenan Yildiz's turn to shoot from afar, narrowly missing the post.

On the other hand, Real attacked quite a lot on the right wing but the passes from Arda Guler and Alexander-Arnold did not bring many changes. "Los Blancos" also had 2 clear chances, which were Jude Bellingham's shot from a tight angle and Federico Valverde's long-range shot. Goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio played excellently to help Juventus keep a clean sheet at halftime.

As soon as the second half began, Real increased their attack speed and created suffocating pressure on Juventus' goal. After two failed long-range shots, the La Liga representative opened the scoring after Garcia's successful aerial duel in the 54th minute.

6 minutes later, the score almost increased to 2-0 for Real. Valverde jumped up and hooked the ball impressively from close range but the Juventus goalkeeper still managed to push the ball away to save the goal.

After conceding the goal, Juventus tried to push forward but all the "Bianconeri" could do was a few inaccurate long-range shots. On the other side of the front line, Real maintained the initiative with attacks from both flanks. Mbappe returned but did not leave a significant mark.