Michael Olise fired Bayern Munich into the knockout stages of the Club World Cup, scoring in the 84th minute for a 2-1 win over Boca Juniors on Friday night. German champion Bayern made it two wins in Group C and advanced to the round of 16 with a game to spare.
Olise secured the victory at Hard Rock Stadium after Miguel Merentiel had put Boca in position for a draw with a brilliant solo goal in the 66th.
Bayern, which tops the group, took the lead on Harry Kane’s clinical finish in the 18th and went on to miss of a slew of chances before Merentiel’s equalizer.
Angel Di Maria leads Benfica past Auckland City 6-0
Ángel Di María and Leandro Barreiro each scored two goals Friday to help Benfica rout Auckland City 6-0 in a Club World Cup game that was delayed at halftime because of thunder and lightning.
Di María, who teamed with Lionel Messi to win the 2022 World Cup with Argentina, scored his first goal from the penalty spot deep into added time at the end of the first half. His second score, and the team’s sixth, was again from the penalty spot and in added time at the end of the match.
Auckland City exchanged counterattacks with the Portuguese powerhouse in the first half of the Group C match, but was still outshot 18-1.
The second half went Benfica’s way. Vangelis Pavlidis made it 2-0 in the 53rd minute, Renato Sanches scored a short time later and Barreiro then scored a pair of goals to increase the lead to 5-0.
A thunderstorm delayed the start of the second half for more than two hours. When the match resumed at Inter&Co Stadium, the goals came pouring in for Benfica.
Youcef Belaili scores in Esperance’s 1-0 victory over LAFC
Nashville (USA), Jun 21 (AP): Yousef Belaili scored in the 70th minute and Esperance de Tunisie beat LAFC 1-0 on Friday night in the Club World Cup to remain in contention to advance and eliminate the California MLS team.
LAFC had one final chance to tie it in the 99th minute on Dénis Bouanaga’s right-footed shot off a penalty kick just in front, but goalkeeper Béchir Ben Säid smothered it.
Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban were in the crowd of 13,651 at 30,000-seat GEODIS Park on a steamy late afternoon.
Club WC: Bayern in knockout stages, Benfica & Esperance register wins
Miami Gardens (USA), Jun 21 (AP)