At dawn on Dec. 19 at the Lusail Stadium in Doha, Qatar, a star-studded matchup played out as expected. The matchup was between La Liga giants Real Madrid and Pachuca, the bottom-ranked team in the Mexican Super League.
The game is like a chess game, the first half of the storm, Vinicius with 200 million euros, clever for Mbappe to send an assist, breaking the silence, Real Madrid halftime to 1-0 lead. In the second half, Mbappe played again, assisted Rodrigo goal, the score extended to 2-0, then Vazquez with a keen sense of penalty kicks, let Vinicius scored again, the score will be locked at 3-0.
In the end, Real Madrid finished off Pachuca with a 3-0 victory, not only winning the Intercontinental Cup, but also collecting their second crown of the season.
In this summit clash, Coach Carlo Ancelotti lined up in a 4231 formation, with Mbappe up front, Bellingham marshaling the midfield, and Vinicius and Rodrigo roaming the wings. Valverde and Camarvinga sat at the back, with Vazquez, Joan Armeni, Rüdiger and F. Garcia forming a sturdy backline and Courtois in goal. The total value of the starting lineup is a whopping 1.07 billion euros, while Pachuca's starting lineup is worth just 27.7 million euros, with Long Dong being even more valuable as a Chinese Super League veteran.
Although Real Madrid had 65% possession, the two sides had an equal number of shots on goal, both at 12, with Real Madrid shooting on goal 5 times, just one more than Pachuca. Real Madrid's victory was due in large part to the individual abilities of those 300 million euro superstars. Vinicius' precise assist, Mbappe's easy goal, Rodrigo's consecutive dinks on the penalty line, and Vazquez's grasp of a penalty kick all highlighted the individual strength of Real Madrid's players.
The stats reveal that despite Real Madrid's dominance in possession, the number of shots on goal was even, with Real Madrid having the higher percentage of shots on target. Pachuca is ranked at the bottom of the Mexican Super League, but both sides showed a desire to attack in this match. Real Madrid's victory is undoubtedly the best proof of its strength.