Porto out of FIFA Club World Cup after madcap 4-4 draw against Al-Ahly | OneFootball

FC Porto bowed out of the Club World Cup in the group stage after drawing 4-4 against Egyptian champions Al-Ahly last night.

The result means the Portuguese outfit finish third in Group A, failing to win a game in the tournament and failing to make the knockouts.

In a remarkable match at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, the Dragons four times fell behind but four times equalised.

A disjointed, disorganised and error-strewn display punctuated by moments of quality – Rodrigo Mora and William Gomes scoring fantastic goals – was a perfect reflection of a forgettable season for Porto.

Anselmi feeling the heat

Coach Martín Anselmi will be under further pressure with little noticeable progress being made since his arrival at the club at the start of the calendar year.

Al-Ahly took the lead on 15 minutes when a careless turnover by Danny Namaso on the halfway line led to a quick break finished by Danish-Palestinian striker Abou Ali.

Porto hit straight back, Rodrigo Mora showing wonderful close control and composure to dribble round the goalkeeper and score.

The Egyptians were the hungrier and more energetic team in the first half and went into the break leading thanks to another defensive mistake. Fábio Vieira gave away a penalty with a clumsy challenge on Zizo, Abou Ali making no mistake from the spot.

Goal glut

An explosive start to the second half saw three goals scored in three minutes. William Gomes, Porto’s liveliest player in the match, equalised with a brilliant long-range effort, but immediately Al-Ahly regained the lead as Abou Ali completed his hat-trick with a terrific header from a superb Mohamed Hany cross.

Porto responded in kind, Samu also rising impressively to power in a header from Vieira’s cross.

With news filtering through that Palmeiras were losing 2-0 against Inter Miami at this point, Porto’s chances of staying in the tournament remained alive, the Dragons desperately needing to find a winner.

Hopes extinguished

But Al-Ahly quashed those hopes by retaking the lead in the 64th minute. The impressive Ali Ben Romdhane capped an excellent display with a brilliant shot on the turn from outside the box that gave Cláudio Ramos no chance.

In a crazily open game chances kept coming at both ends of the pitch, Porto equalising in the 89th minute through a 20-yard Pepê shot, for a final 4-4 scoreline.

Porto end their participation at the Club World Cup with two draws and one defeat. Difficult days for president André Villas-Boas and coach Anselmi.

Iván Marcano, Porto captain

“This season we have not achieved out minimum objectives and this match ended up being a reflection of the season. We had to win today, and probably by a few goals difference to get through, so we took risks. They are very good in transitions, they created lots of chances and we weren’t able to stop them. That was the key to the game. I’d like to thank our fans. We tried our best, but it wasn’t good enough.”

Martín Anselmi, Porto coach

“The team fought hard, were competitive and went for the victory until the end, but it ended up not being the result we hoped for. Conceding four goals? To suffer transitions you need to lose the ball, and for the first goals we lost the ball and did not run to win it back.

“It’s a season where nothing went to plan for our aspirations. Now the market it open. We have to see what is lacking, build a good squad, see where we went wrong and focus on the championship. My future? It’s not the time to talk about that.”