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Brazilian giants had the better of the chances in goalless FIFA Club World Cup draw.
Fluminense FC and Borussia Dortmund played out an entertaining draw in their Group F curtain-raiser at MetLife Stadium.
The Brazilian side, however, will perhaps feel their performance was worthy of maximum points. They played with speed and dynamism from the outset, with attacking duo Jhon Arias and Agustin Canobbio particularly prominent. While clear chances proved hard to come by in the first half, Flu regularly threatened with long-range efforts. Arias, Martinelli and Hercules all came close to putting them ahead with strikes from outside the box.
Dortmund’s best moment of the opening period came when Karim Adeyemi darted down the left and flashed a ball across the box. Serhou Guirassy was inches away from converting.
Shortly before the hour, the Fluminense fans inside MetLife Stadium were on their feet when Everaldo burst clear on goal. Under pressure from defender Waldemar Anton, the striker opted to pass to Canobbio, whose shot was comfortably saved by Gregor Kobel.
Flu continued to look the more likely and Dortmund were indebted to Kobel when he parried Everaldo’s deflected shot. He then made a point-blank stop from Nonato on the rebound, although the midfielder was later flagged offside.
By this stage, Jobe Bellingham had been introduced for his Dortmund debut, and the Englishman quickly settled into the game, passing the ball with confidence and quality.
The Germans finished the match strongly but, with neither side able to make a dramatic breakthrough, the points were shared.
"For myself, I think I played well. The team did as well. It was very important to compete (well) today against Dortmund. They are very strong. Their back five is not easy to penetrate. I’m very happy for the team today. Now we need to recover well for the next game."
Thiago Silva, Fluminense defender
"Thank you to the fans. They came in great numbers. The team played a great game and deserved to win because of the chances we created. We need to take it one game at a time. Today we knew it would be a tough game. And from tomorrow we'll start thinking about our next opponent."
Renato Portaluppi, Fluminense coach
"Fluminense is a top team. We weren’t as aggressive as I expected in the first half. It was hard for us, we had to run a lot. Overall, it was a lucky point for us. But a draw against a Brazilian team is always a good start, and now we have to win the next games."
Niko Kovac, Borussia Dortmund coach
(FIFA.COM)