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Corinthians tops Al-Nassr, makes final
Posted: Monday January 10, 2000 10:18 PM
SAO PAULO (Reuters) -- Corinthians captain Freddy Rincon scored with eight minutes left on Monday to send the Brazilians into the Club World Championship final with a 2-0 win over Saudi Arabia's Al-Nassr. Both Corinthians and Real earned seven points from three games in Group A, but Corinthians had a goal difference of four to Real's three. The result set up the possibility of an all-Brazil final in the first-ever club championship. Corinthians will play either Brazil's Vasco da Gama or Mexico's Necaxa in the final. Vasco needs only a draw in Tuesday's match with Necaxa to advance. Real would have gone through on goals scored if the teams' respective goal differences had been level. Real might point out that Corinthians' second goal in its 2-0 win over Raja Casablanca earlier in the tournament was awarded even though replays showed the ball did not cross the goal line. Until Rincon struck in the pouring rain, it seemed that the underrated Saudi side would frustrate the Brazilian champions. With his goal, Rincon gained revenge for his unhappy stay at Real Madrid in 1996. Before the games, Real had claimed Corinthians was given an unfair advantage by playing second and therefore knowing what result was needed to advance. Corinthians had been reduced to 10 men after fullback Daniel was sent off on his debut for the club, and the side was being forced on the defensive by an increasingly confident opponent. Shortly before the Colombian veteran of three World Cups scored, Ahmed Bahja had come within a whisker of equalizing for Al-Nassr. Corinthians never looked comfortable against a side that defended intelligently and played a neat passing game in midfield. Midfielder Ricardinho opened the scoring in the 25th minute, flicking the ball between a defender's legs and scoring with a left-footed shot. But he limped off injured two minutes later, and Corinthians continued to find the going difficult. Striker Luizao missed two good chances early in the second half and the 55,000-strong home crowd in the Morumbi stadium was becoming increasingly restless until Rincon struck to seal the victory, on an assist from Luizao.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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