Urawa Red (Japan) suffered a comeback defeat to Inter Milan (Italy), exiting the group stage of the FIFA Club World Cup. Urawa goalkeeper Nishikawa Shusaku shed tears, saying, "I felt the wall of the world."
Urawa lost 1-2 to Inter Milan in the second match of Group E, held on the 22nd (Korean time) at Lumen Field in Seattle, USA.
Urawa, which lost 1-3 to River Plate (Argentina) in the first match, suffered back-to-back defeats.
Urawa started off well. In the 11th minute of the first half, Watanabe Ryoma scored a surprise opening goal.
Having taken an early lead, Urawa tried to secure the lead by stabilizing their line and looking for counterattacks.
Inter Milan couldn't create any notable opportunities throughout the first half, failing to record a single effective shot.
However, the atmosphere completely changed in the second half. In the 78th minute, Inter Milan's star forward Lautaro Martínez scored the equalizer with a right-footed volley that rippled the net after evading defenders from a corner kick.
Urawa attempted to lock down the game by dropping their defensive line further to maintain the draw for the remaining time, but the relentless pressure from Inter Milan caused gaps to appear.
Inter Milan scored a comeback goal during stoppage time in the second half. Valentin Carboni seized a ball that deflected off the opposing defense and finished it with a right-footed shot. This resulted in a dramatic comeback goal.
With this, Urawa confirmed their elimination from the group stage with two consecutive defeats. Inter Milan, a strong team from Italy that finished as runners-up in the 2024-2025 UEFA Champions League, managed to secure valuable three points after trailing for much of the match and nearly suffering a loss of pride.
Ulsan HD, representing East Asia, also failed to advance to the round of 16 after losing 0-1 to Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa) in the first match and then losing 2-4 to Fluminense (Brazil).
According to Japanese media "Footballzone," Urawa goalkeeper Nishikawa shed tears after the match, stating, "I wanted everyone to hold on until the end. Considering that everyone, including the substitutes, had a defensive mindset, I felt the last-minute goal was truly a cruel result."
He added, "The content was good, but I feel the difference with the world in that we lost in the end."
Amid the confirmation of their elimination from the group stage, Urawa will travel to Los Angeles, USA, to face Monterrey from Mexico in their final group match at 10 a.m. on the 26th.
Nishikawa said, "I cannot return to Japan like this. Many people came hoping for a good result. My only thought now is to win against Monterrey and return to Japan. I want to aim higher than I had initially thought, so I believe this disappointment will surely make me stronger."
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