PALO ALTO (Source: AVID Soccer News)
Lisa Clark, Freelance Writer
Over 30,000 soccer fans turned out at Stanford Stadium on Sunday to watch the first game of the inaugural World Football Challenge, pitting Italian powerhouse Inter Milan against Mexico’s Club America. The Club America faithful were out in force, with enough gold jerseys and banners to make it look like a home game, and they were not disappointed as Club America stunned Inter with a 5-4 victory in penalty kicks.
Despite not starting some of their biggest stars, including Swedish forward Zlatan Ibrahimovich, and missing starting goalkeeper Julio Cesar, Inter came out fighting with a strong cross to the front of goal in the first two minutes of play, which was hit just wide by Diego Milito, one of the newer faces on the Inter roster. Club America stepped up the pace over the course of the next twenty minutes, forcing the Inter defense to dig in and hold against the relentless attack. Both teams struggled to find the back of the net, heading to the locker room tied 0-0 at the half.
Club America went ahead 1-0 in the 51st minute, when midfielder Juan Carlos Silva connected on a left-footed shot off of a corner from Pavel Pardo. Inter made their intentions clear in short order, sending Ibrahimovich into the game. Ivan Cordoba scored the equalizer for Inter with a well-placed header off of a Mario Balotelli corner kick in the 60th minute.
In the final minutes of the match, Club America’s Enrique Esqueda was sent off for late contact with Inter goalkeeper Belec. Even with the man advantage, Inter was unable to move ahead, forcing the game to go to penalty kicks.
Patrick Vieira’s miss on the fourth try sealed it for Inter, giving Club America the advantage and the 5-4 win, as they made their final two shots.
Next up for Inter is manager Jose Mourinho’s former side Chelsea on Tuesday night, July 21st, at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. Club America will meet AC Milan on Wednesday in Atlanta.
The World Football Championship is a six-city round-robin tournament showcasing four of the world’s top soccer clubs, Italy’s AC Milan and Inter Milan, Mexico’s Club America, and England’s Chelsea FC.
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