Club World Cup: Dudu inspires Palmeiras to final with win against Al Ahly

Abu Dhabi: Dudu scored one goal and created another as Palmeiras defeated Al Ahly 2-0 on Tuesday to reach the Club World Cup final and set up a potential showdown with Chelsea.

The playmaker released Raphael Veiga for the opening goal just before half-time and then fired in a second for Copa Libertadores winners Palmeiras early in the second half.

The Brazilian side await the winner of Wednesday’s second semi-final between Chelsea and Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal as they try to end a run of eight straight titles for European clubs.

“Since I was a kid I’ve always dreamed of this, I’ve always been a Palmeiras supporter,” said Veiga.

“Dudu gave me a great ball and I was able to put it away well. I know we still haven’t won anything but we’ve taken a very big step in that direction.”

Roughly two-thirds of the 15,000-seat Al Nahyan Stadium was occupied by green-clad Palmeiras fans, many of whom made the 12,000-kilometre trip from Sao Paulo, for a repeat of last year’s third-place play-off won on penalties by Al Ahly.

Midfielder Amr El Solia was rushed back into the Al Ahly team less than 48 hours after he started Egypt’s loss to Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations final.

An attritional first half required a touch of brilliance from Dudu to break it open, his deft flick from Danilo’s pass sending Veiga clear to slot beyond Aly Lotfy.

Dudu doubled the lead four minutes after half-time as he drifted forward unchallenged from the halfway line before slamming a fierce shot past Lofty from a tight angle.

African champions Al Ahly appeared to have pulled a goal back when Mohamed Sherif tapped in the rebound after Palmeiras goalkeeper Weverton spilled Ahmed Abdelkader’s tame strike, but it was ruled out for offside.

Al Ahly’s slim hopes were all but extinguished when captain Ayman Ashraf was sent off for a terrible tackle on Rony, his initial yellow card changed to red following a VAR review.

Walid Soliman headed against the bar deep into stoppage time, moments after Weverton clawed away an effort from Mohamed Hany, the hero of Al Ahly’s win over Monterrey in the previous round.

A third semi-final loss in as many attempts against Brazilian opponents leaves the Egyptians trying to come away with a consolation bronze for the second tournament in a row.

“We have to keep going, we have a medal to play for. It’s not all lost,” said Al Ahly coach Pitso Mosimane.

“We should try and get a medal for the continent. We have to try more and come again next year and do better.”

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