FIFA Club World Cup: Al Ahly eliminated after entertaining high-scoring draw with Porto

It was an entertaining but ultimately disappointing Monday evening for Al Ahly supporters after their team was eliminated from the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup following an entertaining 4-4 draw with Portugal’s FC Porto to complete play in Group A.

Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane’s beautiful strike in the 64th minute appeared to put Al Ahly on their way to victory but a late equalizer from Pepê completed a frustrating tournament for the Egyptian super club.

The star of the show was Wessam Abou Ali. The Palestine national team striker bounced back from disappointment in the first two games to produce a hat-trick in an outstanding performance that ultimately was not enough for the Cairo club. The Danish-born forward opened the scoring in the 15th minute when his shot went in off the post.

What ensued was a heavyweight boxing style bout where the two foes exchanged blows. Porto wonderkid Rodrigo Mora equalized eight minutes later when a fortunate bounce put him in on goal and he rounded Ahly goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy to finish for the equalizer.

But at the end of the half it was Abou Ali who put Ahly back into the lead with a penalty kick after Zizo was tripped up in the Porto penalty area by Fabio Vieira.

Abou Ali’s goal set the stage for a second half filled with madness as the teams scored three goals in three minutes. William Gomes leveled the match back up then Abou Ali immediately responded with a perfect header from Mohamed Hany’s cross.

But the scoring was far from over. Halftime substitute Samu responded quickly after by heading in a corner kick service from Vieira and once again, the match was level at 3-3.

Ben Romdhane’s beautiful strike put Ahly back ahead but the result in the other match between Inter Miami and Palmeiras meant the Cairo club were unlikely to qualify for the Round of 16. Pepê’s late goal confirmed that neither team would advance when he finished the scoring in the 89th minute.

Palmeiras, as group winner, and Inter Miami qualify for the Round of 16 while Ahly finish level with Porto on two points, in last place due to the goal difference tiebreaker. Palmeiras will face fellow Brazilian club Botafogo while Inter Miami clash with Paris Saint-Germain.

Final Group A Table