Real Madrid vs Dortmund live updates: Mbappe on bench for Club World Cup match; predictions, team news and latest – The New York Times

FIFA Club World Cup
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Club World Cup quarter-final action concludes at MetLife Stadium where Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund meet later today.
It is a repeat of the 2024 Champions League final with a place in the semi-final against PSG on the line.
Madrid are the record winners of this tournament with five titles. Dortmund, meanwhile, have never won it.
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A couple of The Athletic's finest brains were on prediction duty for today's game.
Mario Cortegana Santos: Real Madrid 3-1 Dortmund
Dortmund’s Guirassy-Adeyemi duo is dangerous, but Madrid have better players and a very positive dynamic, especially in attack.
Seb Stafford-Bloor: Real Madrid 1-2 Dortmund 2
The Germans reserve their best for games like this and Kovac’s counter-attacking football should be a problem for Madrid.
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As you may imagine, Real Madrid are favoured by many to advance to the semi-final.
The eggheads over at Opta give the Spanish side a 60 per cent likelihood of progressing today, leaving 40 per cent for Borussia Dortmund's chances. Those figures are based on 10,000 match simulations.
When considering the result inside 90 minutes, Opta assesses the likelihood of a Madrid win at 47 per cent, a Dortmund win at 27 per cent, and extra time at 26 per cent.
Madrid and Dortmund met in the Champions League this past season, with the Spaniards winning 5-2 at the Bernabeu behind Vinicius Junior's hat-trick in the second half. They also met in the 2024 final of the UCL, with Madrid prevailing 2-0 thanks to goals from Dani Carvajal and Vini Jr as seen above.
In fact, Madrid have won four straight matches against Dortmund.
The Guirassy-Adeyemi duo has shown their potential, but Dortmund have also shown defensive weaknesses today that Los Blancos should know how to exploit.
Real Madrid's Gonzalo Garcia and Dortmund's Serhou Guirassy are in the mix for the Golden Boot at this tournament, trailing the co-leaders by just one goal.
Players on teams that are still in the tournament are indicated in bold below.
4 goals
3 goals
Niko Kovac makes two changes from Dortmund's starting line-up against Monterrey in the round of 16, one by choice and one by necessity.
Julian Brandt and Marcel Sabitzer come in for Felix Nmecha and the suspended Jobe Bellingham.
Starting XI: Kobel, Bensebaini, Anton, Sule, Sabitzer, Brandt, Gross, Svensson, Ryerson, Adeyemi, Guirassy
Subs: Ostrzinski, Meyer, Couto, Reyna, Nmecha, Beier, Duranville, Chukwuemeka, Campbell, Mane, Inacio, Albert, Azhil, Benkara
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Kylian Mbappe on the bench again, despite making his tournament debut against Juventus last time out. This suggests that he is nowhere near 100% fitness and that Xabi Alonso's confidence in Gonzalo García is very high. And no wonder: the academy product has scored three goals and provided one assist in four games in the United States.
Starting XI: Courtois, Alexander-Arnold, Rudiger, Huijsen, Fran Garcia, Valverde, Tchouameni, Guler, Bellingham, Vinicius Jr, Gonzalo Garcia
Subs: Lunin, Carvajal, Militao, Mbappe, Modric, Rodrygo, Vazquez, Ceballos, Brahim, Youssef, Jacobo, Asencio, Chema, Victor Munoz, Mario Martin
Borussia Dortmund have been on a strong run since the middle of April, going unbeaten over their past 11 matches in all competitions.
They've racked up nine wins alongside two draws during that stretch, which comprises games from the Club World Cup, the Champions League and the Bundesliga.
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Who will win this match? Will today's victor advance to the final? And who are you backing to win the tournament?
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In the end, this has proven a good deal for Dortmund. Despite Gittens’ drop in form in the second half of last season, they have still managed to secure a big fee, at a time when they are looking to rebuild their squad and finance a new era.
For context, only four times since the start of the 2019 season have BVB sold a player for a fee larger than €50m. Jadon Sancho, Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham were the first three, now Gittens is the fourth.
Politically, it has its significance, too. This is the first major sale to occur under the watch of Lars Ricken, who became the CEO for football in May 2024. Ricken was actually head of the Dortmund academy when Gittens arrived from Manchester City in 2020, so — on a personal level — he has overseen the player’s growth from free transfer, to one of the bigger sales in the club’s recent history.
They are losing an excellent player and the hope had been that Gittens would stay longer than he has and grow into a true Bundesliga. That has not happened, but this will be some consolation.
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Chelsea and Dortmund have confirmed the transfer of Jamie Gittens for a fee of £48.5million with a potential £3.5m in add-ons.
The 20-year-old has signed a seven-year contract at Stamford Bridge through to 2032, after The Athletic reported that the clubs had reached an agreement in principle last week.
Dortmund had been open to a sale of the former Manchester City youth player, who had moved to the German club in 2020, to help fund a summer rebuild of Niko Kovac’s side, who sealed Champions League qualification on the final day of the Bundesliga season.
Lars Ricken, Dortmund’s managing director for sport, said the transfer would prove “extremely valuable” to the Bundesliga club.
Gittens recorded 12 goals and five assists in 48 matches during 2024-25.
GO FURTHER
Chelsea confirm Jamie Gittens transfer from Dortmund
No one would have expected it a year ago, but this clash will be an interesting battle of the back threes. Niko Kovac has made Dortmund far more defensively solid since arriving in January, but the tactical tweak has meant that Karim Adeyemi is now playing a more central role alongside striker Serhou Guirassy.
A back-three system is also an attacking ploy from Xabi Alonso, allowing him to keep his best players in advanced positions and create more combinations through the heart of the pitch. The early iterations have had some teething issues, but it will be interesting to see how Alonso continues to tweak his system.
Goalkeeper Gregor Kobel has been magnificent. He chose to stay at the club despite interest elsewhere and has had a tournament full of excellent saves, especially his double-stop against Fluminense in the first game. That form will need to continue today.
Gonzalo Garcia. The academy striker had only played 61 minutes with the first team this season before the Club World Cup, but he has taken advantage of the absences of Endrick (injured) and Kylian Mbappe (illness) to surprise everyone. He has three goals, including the winner in the last 16, and one assist, and has been compared by Xabi Alonso to club legend Raul.
Not bad. Dortmund were pilloried in Germany for their goalless draw with Fluminense in the opening match, but the Brazilians then showed what a good side they are. There was more good than bad in the 2-1 win against Monterrey, which should have been far more comfortable. If there is a criticism, it’s that slight carelessness which could yet cost them.
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Xabi Alonso has restored enthusiasm at all levels (staff, players and fans) after a year of internal tensions and a notable lack of trophies in Madrid. Beyond the three consecutive victories at the Club World Cup, with eight goals scored and two conceded at the tournament, Alonso is showing a real tactical richness and a flair for intervening successfully during matches.
Borussia Dortmund booked their place in today's quarter-final place with a 2-1 win against Monterrey.
Serhou Guirassy got the goals for the Bundesliga side with two well-taken first-half finishes. German Berterame headed Monterrey back into the game straight after half-time but they could not find an equaliser. A late Sergio Ramos header flew agonisingly close to the top corner as Dortmund held on for the victory.
Real Madrid met Juventus in Miami in the round of 16, running out 1-0 winners thanks to Gonzalo Garcia's headed goal from close range in the 54th minute. Garcia's strike was his third of the tournament as he continued to impress in his deputy role while Kylian Mbappe recovered from acute gastroenteritis. Mbappe made his first appearance in this match, coming off the bench in the second half.

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