Auckland City shock Club World Cup again to make semi-finals

[Old Master]

Auckland City shock Club World Cup again to make semi-finals
December 14, 2014

RABAT: New Zealand minnows Auckland City will play the champions of South America in the semi-final of the Club World Cup after pulling off their second miracle victory in four days.

The Kiwi semi-professionals – whose players still need to work second jobs to sustain themselves – will now pocket $2.4 million from making it to the tournament's semi-final and a date with Argentinian powerhouses San Lorenzo.

Having stunned the champions of Morocco, Moghreb Tétouan, in front of a packed house during the week, Auckland then proved it was no fluke on Saturday night, defeating the champions of Africa, ES Setif 1-0 in Rabat.
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Ramon Tribulietx's side were tremendous value for their win, physically intimidating the Algerians from the opening whistle – an approach that proved ideal as the rain and wind drenched the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium.

Despite having only 40 per cent of possession, they played plenty of fine football and created a vastly superior number of genuine chances. While Setif's efforts to save the game in the final 10 minutes, it's arguable City could have won by a greater margin.

"I'm very proud of the players today and I think we got the result we deserved," a triumphant Tribulietx said after the game. "We played 120 minutes on Wednesday and then had to come up against the champions of Africa - and to play another 90 minutes like that was unbelievable."

Auckland's midfield repeatedly broke down the Algerians in the centre of the park and forced them wide, where they struggled to mount any meaningful opportunities.

By contrast, the New Zealand Premiership side could have gone in with the lead at the main break had luck been on their side, with Ryan de Vries firing a golden effort just wide and a beautifully angled Angel Berlanga chip skimming the top of the bar.

"We had to defend for periods and I think we did great without parking the bus," Tribulietx said. "We pressed them the way we wanted to press, we created chances in the first half and in the second half we scored the goal we needed."

The goal heard around the world – or at least up and down New Zealand – was a superb strike in the 52nd minute from central defender John Irving.

The goal capped a man-of-the-match display from the stopper, who rose through the ranks at English Premier League club Everton but failed to crack the senior ranks.

After recently missing a contract with Central Coast Mariners following a trial, Irving will surely have A-League clubs monitoring his efforts in the semi-final following his enormous performance.

In attack, standout displays came on the right from de Vries – who had already made himself a hero with Bentleigh Greens during their FFA Cup run – and on the opposite flank from Argentinian Emiliano Tade, both of who gave the Setif wing-backs hell all night.

The evergreen presence of New Zealand football, 38-year old Ivan Vicelich, wound back the years with a fighting display in defensive midfield, putting his arms, elbows and shins to good use in the trying conditions.

But when it comes to their chances of taking down San Lorenzo, Tribulietx remains ever the realist.

"We're still only semi-professional – we're not professional at all. We're definitely still underdogs," he said. "But we've beaten two professional sides, we've not conceded a goal in two games and we held both sides to no more than 3-4 chances.

"We're a very small club, with a volunteer setup, and if you guys [the media] came to see one of our games, you'd be amazed on how we organise everything. Coming here and reaching the semi-finals of the Club World Cup, it's unbelievable. It's too big for us. It's fantastic."

[Member 20000]

Awesome

[Bomber]

Took San Lorenzo to extra time, not a bad effort!

[Con M]

Took San Lorenzo to extra time, not a bad effort!

True, it was a brave effort & I hope it helped raise the profile of the sport in Kiwi/Rugby Union Land.

But the natural order of things now still prevails, the New World (South America) versus the Old World (Europe) in this weekend's Final.

The Pope's team San Lorenzo versus Real Madrid.