The second match of Group C at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami was highly anticipated by fans and the match between Boca Juniors and Benfica lived up to the hype. The Portuguese champions brought a very strong squad to the FIFA Club World Cup with key players taking on starting roles while for Boca Juniors, Edinson Cavani was absent due to injury.
Evangelos Pavlidis (Benfica, right) fiercely disputes with Nicolas Figal
Benfica attacked from the start and Renato Sanches almost scored in the 6th minute from a very delicate pass from Fernandez Carreras. In the 18th minute, Angel di Maria coordinated well for Bruma to finish, but unfortunately this player hit the post in an offside position.
Miguel Merentiel opens the scoring for Boca Juniors
Boca Juniors responded with great force and efficiency. In the 21st minute, Lautaro Blanco threaded a pass through the opposing defender, creating an opportunity for Miguel Merentiel to open the scoring. Six minutes later, Boca Juniors doubled the lead from a corner kick and Rodrigo Battaglia was there in time to finish successfully.
Rodrigo Battaglia doubled the lead for Boca
Despite scoring two goals in less than half an hour, Boca Juniors failed to capitalise on their advantage. The Argentine side's slump allowed Benfica to rise just before half-time. Nico Otamendi was fouled in the Boca Juniors penalty area and Di Maria converted the penalty, narrowing the deficit to 1-2.
Di Maria is the oldest player to score - 37 years 122 days
Ander Herrera received a red card in the first half
The Argentine team was frustrated and played more aggressively in the second half, creating many tense situations. The surprise happened to Benfica in the 71st minute when striker Andrea Belotti had a dangerous high kick on an opponent and was sent off.
Nicolas Otamendi headed home the equalizer for Benfica
Benfica continued to equalize 2-2 in the 84th minute with a header from a corner kick by Otamendi. Nicolas Figal of Boca Juniors received a direct red card in the 88th minute, making the match even more heated. Players from both sides were about to fight when the match ended, but the referee intervened in time.
The referee had to constantly watch VAR to make a decision.
Players from both teams lacked restraint and were ready to fight each other.
In a tight contest, the fate of both Boca Juniors and Benfica depends on the outcome of their next matches against Bayern Munich and Auckland City in Group C.
"Organizer" FIFA continues to be criticized when the Chelsea - Los Angeles FC match only had 22,137 spectators coming to watch one of the two "home" teams play, even though the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta has a capacity of 73,019 seats, not to mention that this stadium is always proud to have the largest number of fans watching in the MLS professional league.
Source: https://nld.com.vn/dai-chien-bong-da-latin-boca-juniors-cam-chan-benfica-tran-cau-4-ban-3-the-do-19625061708593863.htm
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