Great result against Al-Hilal's stellar squad

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FC Red Bull Salzburg

·23 June 2025

Great result against Al-Hilal's stellar squad

Strong performance leads to goalless draw

We ended up sharing the points with Al-Hilal in our second group stage match at the FIFA Club World Cup. It was the expected tough evening in brutal Washington, D. C. heat against Simone Inzaghi's stars, yet our boys can be proud of a strong showing that brought them a more-than-deserved draw, which could easily have been more.

Match summary

Under the intense heat at Audi Field – with temperatures as high as 35 degrees Celsius – we made a strong start. The Saudis got the first chance in the third minute, but we pressed on and gained an opportunity to take the lead with an Onisiwo volley (9').

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The opening 15 minutes were a real end-to-end battle before the Blue Wave lived up to their nickname and increasingly penned our defence back. Jacob Rasmussen & Co had their hands full but put in a sterling defensive effort.

Against opponents of such individual class in the intense heat, we had to keep a cool head, but that was not easy. The drinks break after 30 minutes of play came at an ideal time, as there had been no let-up in the play until that point, with Simone Inzaghi's side becoming dominant - but we battled bravely with all we had.

Straight after the restart, we almost grabbed a sensational opener. Substitute John Mellberg (48') was free to turn in from six yards out from a corner, yet Bono saved before a Dorgeles Nene effort was cleared from the goal line. A pair of top chances!

Al-Hilal continued to look for an opener, but our back three kept them well at bay. We enjoyed much more of the play for long stretches of the second half. The spectators had no shortage of entertainment despite the scoreline, as both teams were eager to win, even if our opponents were running out of steam by the end.

The final phrase was thrilling with Maurits Kjaergaard making his comeback, Christian Zawieschitzky pulling off a good save and our boys enjoying the upper hand. Only goals were lacking as it remained goalless.

We have at least one more World Cup match ahead of us when we face Real Madrid on Thursday evening in Philadelphia (21:00 local time, 03:00 Friday morning Austrian time). Points would help our bid to make the last 16, but if Pachuca can do us a favour against Al-Hilal, we will be there regardless. DAZN will broadcast that game, like all others at the Club World Cup, live and for free. No subscription is needed, just an account.

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Views

If you have four points after two matches and the boys are disappointed in the dressing room afterwards, that says a lot about this team. We played against very strong opponents today, Al-Hilal have immense quality. We defended determinedly, did very well as a team and had our own chances. The bottom line is that I am proud of the team.

Thomas Letsch

Of course it would have been even better with a winning goal, but it could be a very important point! I was just looking forward to the game as I knew my mum was watching, and I just really enjoyed being out during the match - I wasn't as nervous as the first one. It will definitely be tough against Real Madrid, but everything is possible.

Christian Zawieschitzky

It just feels great, as I was out for a long time. That made it particularly special today! It's something different in these conditions - playing around 15 minutes was really tough for me, and I can only imagine what it was like for those who played the full 90.

Maurits Kjaergaard

We put in a good team performance! We defended well and conceded few chances. I am really pleased with my own performance. It would have been great to have scored with my chance, and that annoyed me in the moment, of course, but it kept on going thick and fast. Switching to a back three worked well. We definitely could have won today, but that motivates us for the last group match.

John Mellberg