African champions Ahli surrendered a two-goal lead to allow Pachuca to claim a 4-2 victory as the Red Devils exited the FIFA Club World Cup at the first hurdle. An own goal by defender Fausto Pinto in the 28th minute and a Flavio Amado effort on the stroke of half-time gave Ahli a deserved advantage. Pachuca roared back to level the score in the second half, thanks to goals from Luis Montes and Christian Gimenez as the match went to extra-time. Damian Alvarez put Pachuca in front and Gimenez scored his second of the night either side of extra time to eliminate 2006 bronze medalists Ahli. Pachuca will meet Ecuador's LDU in the tournament's semi-final while Ahli will play the fifth place play-off against the losers of Sunday's game between Adelaide and Gamba Osaka. Ahli were a bit cautious early in the game as Pachuca dominated in terms of possession. Pachuca heavily relied on the pace of diminutive midfielder Alvarez, who repeatedly got the better of Ahli midfielder Ahmed Hassan. The Mexicans had a couple of decent chances as they sought to gain the initiative. In the 17th minute, Gimenez's powerful free-kick was blocked by Ahli keeper Amir Abdul-Hamid. Striker Bruno Marioni wasted a golden opportunity to break the deadlock seven minutes later. He was released by Alvarez's through pass inside the area but his weak shot was easily blocked by Abdul-Hamid. From two counter attacks, Ahli notched two goals to make sure that Pachuca would have a mountain to climb. Pinto inadvertently diverted a Mohamed Abou-Treika cross into his own to gift Ahli the opener. Angolan striker Flavio was found unmarked by Mohamed Barakat's low cross to fire home into the roof of the net just before the interval.
Comeback Barakat had a goal harshly disallowed for offside one minute after the restart when he latched onto Abou-Treika's deft pass before slotting past keeper Miguel Calero. Substitute Montes, who replaced Pinto at halftime, narrowed the gap in the 47th minute. His attempted cross from a right-wing free kick eluded Ahli defenders and left Abdul-Hamid flat-footed to find its way into the back of the net. Ahli maintained their cautious display, sitting back to defend their slender lead. However, their strategy was not fruitful as Pachuca managed to level the score in the 73rd minute. Abdul-Hamid expected that Gimenez would curl his free-kick over the wall, but the latter opted to float it the other direction to deceive the Ahli goalie, who was too slow to react. Pachuca mounted further pressure but were unable to score a crucial third goal as the match went to extra-time. Complete Dominance Pachuca completely dominated both halves of extra time, outplaying Ahli in every aspect of the game as the Cairo giants looked very jaded. Lively midfielder Alvarez put the CONCACAF champions ahead in the 98th minute after capitalizing on some sloppy defending. Ahli skipper Shadi Mohamed failed to clear the danger and Alvarez pounced to fire past the advancing Abdul-Hamid. The 29-year-old turned from scorer to provider in the 110th minute. He robbed Wael Gomaa before feeding the overlapping Gimenez, whose fierce drive left Abdul-Hamid with no chance. Watch the match's goals
