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Real Madrid vs Al-Hilal LIVE: Trent Alexander-Arnold hooked on debut as Real held to draw in Club World Cup
Real Madrid 1-1 Al-Hilal: Alexander-Arnold’s debut for Real Madrid ended after 65 minutes
Real Madrid were held to a 1-1 draw in their Club World Cup opener against Al-Hilal as Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dean Huijsen made their debuts for the club.
Los Blancos took the lead in the first half through a lightning counter attack finished off by Gonzalo Garcia, but were pegged back before the break as Ruben Neves fired home from the spot.
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Al-Hilal were good value for the scoreline and looked on course for a deserved draw, only for Real to be awarded a 90th-minute penalty after Fran Garcia was caught in the face by a flailing arm.
However, Federico Valverde blew the chance to snatch a winner as his spot-kick was saved by Bono, denying Xabi Alonso a winning start as Real Madrid boss and ensuring a statement result for the Saudi club.
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Real Madrid 0-0 Al-Hilal
10 mins: CLOSE! Al-Hilal should be in front!
A ball is lofted to the back-post before being fired back across the six-yard box where Leonardo is waiting, but Huijsen gets close enough to force him to put his shot wide.
Real Madrid 0-0 Al-Hilal
8 mins: Valverde clashes with Koulibaly and goes down in a heap. He’s receiving treatment for a knock to the head.
Real Madrid 0-0 Al-Hilal
6 mins: An unlikely shooter from range in Asencio but it’s straight down the throat of Bono.
Trent has barely touched the ball in the first six minutes, just in case you were wondering.
Real Madrid 0-0 Al-Hilal
4 mins: Free-kick goes into the wall but Al-Hilal keep it alive, getting it out to Neves who shoots from range.
We know he can hit them, but the ex-Wolves can only hit over.
Real Madrid 0-0 Al-Hilal
2 mins: SAVE! The first chance goes Al-Hilal’s way as Milenkovic-Savic stings the palms of Courtois with a shot from range.
The Saudi side then wins a free-kick on the edge of the area after Real fail to clear.
KICK-OFF! Real Madrid 0-0 Al-Hilal
We’re off in Miami!
Al-Hilal kicks this off as Cancelo is fouled inside 20 seconds.
Club World Cup attendance woes continue
Even the draw of Real Madrid can’t come close to selling out the Hard Rock Stadium as another group game begins with a patchy attendance.
Trent Alexander-Arnold reception as he steps onto pitch as a Real Madrid player
Big cheers as Trent Alexander-Arnold is introduced to the stadium NBA-style for his first Real Madrid appearance.
The vast majority of fans are decked in white - no prizes for guessing who the Miami faithful is backing.
Alexander-Arnold spared Mitrovic test
Important to note that things did not go Trent Alexander-Arnold’s way when he last met Aleksandar Mitrovic on a football pitch, during Liverpool’s season opener at Fulham in 2022/23.
In that game, Alexander-Arnold got dunked on by Mitrovic for Fulham’s opener in a 2-2 draw, a game the Englishman was roundly dominated in.
The big Serb was a late withdrawal from the squad to face Real, sparing Alexander-Arnold a serious test for his debut.
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