Odion Ighalo will be chasing both personal and club glory when Al‑Hilal face European champions Real Madrid in the Club World Cup final at the Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium in Morocco on Saturday. The 14‑time Champions League winners are accustomed to lifting trophies, and they will be eager to add another to their record.
Al‑Hilal earned their place in the final by stunning South American champions Flamengo 3‑2 on Tuesday, thanks to two penalties from Salem Al‑Dawsari and a close‑range strike from Luciano Vietto. Madrid, meanwhile, reached the final after a 4‑1 victory over African champions Al Ahly on Wednesday, with goals from Vinícius Júnior, Federico Valverde, Rodrygo and Sergio Arribas at the Stade Prince Moulay Abdallah in Rabat.
The match will be billed as a clash between the Asian and European champions, but it holds special significance for Ighalo. He will be looking to claim his first intercontinental trophy against a side bolstered by Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema and a deep pool of talent. “This is a very ambitious club. They don’t understand losing. Since I joined, every tournament we go out there to win – the league, the Champions League, the King’s Cup, the Club World Cup. Every game we play is like a final. When you put on the shirt of Al‑Hilal, you always have to win. We want to go for every trophy. It’s exactly the same for this Club World Cup,” Ighalo told FIFA.com. “Everything is possible in football. Nowadays you can’t predict what’s going to happen. Al‑Hilal will fight and win it, because in football it’s possible to do anything when you work hard and believe in yourself.”
The final also offers the former Manchester United striker a chance to break his personal goal‑less record against Real Madrid. In three appearances for Granada, Ighalo never scored against the Spanish giants. Granada lost two of those matches, including a 5‑1 defeat at the Santiago Bernabéu in January 2012, with Ikechukwu Uche providing the assist for Granada’s lone goal. That effort was eclipsed by strikes from Cristiano Ronaldo, Gonzalo Higuaín, a Karim Benzema brace and Sergio Ramos. Ighalo’s last encounter with Madrid ended in celebration, however, when a Cristiano Ronaldo own‑goal gave Granada a 1‑0 win under José Mourinho in February 2013.
More than a decade later, Ighalo will hope for another victory. While he would love to score against the four‑time champions, the Nigerian striker would be satisfied with any win – whether through his own goal, a teammate’s, or even a fortuitous own goal as before. With 10 goals in 18 appearances this season, Ighalo’s contribution will be crucial for Al‑Hilal, who have lost only two of their 19 competitive matches across all competitions. They now aim to pull off a monumental upset and claim their first ever Club World Cup trophy.
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