- Joined
- Jul 17, 2009
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10 years of FIF
Qualified teams
Enter in the Semi-Finals
- Barcelona UEFA Winners of the 2008–09 UEFA Champions League
- Estudiantes CONMEBOL Winners of the 2009 Copa Libertadores
Enter in the Quarter-Finals
- Atlante CONCACAF Winners of the 2008–09 CONCACAF Champions League
- Pohang Steelers AFC Winners of the 2009 AFC Champions League
- TP Mazembe CAF Winners of the 2009 CAF Champions League
Enter in the Playoff round
- Al-Ahli Host Winners of the 2008–09 UAE Football League
- Auckland City OFC Winners of the 2008–09 OFC Champions League
Missing from the Club map are TP Mazembe & Pohang Steelers FC, from Africa & Asia, respectively. Pohang is a city in South Korea while Mazembe is a Congolese club from Lubumbashi
The following pairings are now confirmed:
Match 1, 9 December: Al Ahli FC v. Auckland City FC
Match 2, 11 December: TP Mazembe v. Pohang Steelers FC
Match 3, 12 December: Winner Match 1 v. Atlante FC
Match 4, 15 December: Winner Match 2 v. Estudiantes de La Plata
Match 5, 16 December: Winner Match 3 v. FC Barcelona
Match 6, 16 December: Loser Match 2 v. Loser Match 3
Match 7 (5th place match), 19 December: Loser Match 4 v. Loser Match 5
Match 8 (3rd place match), 19 December: Winner Match 4 v. Winner Match 5
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Al Ahli Dubai - Players to Watch:
- Baré (Brazil - Formerly Gamba Osaka)
- Hosny Abd Rabo (Egypt National Team)
- Ahmed Khalil (UAE, Asian Young Footballer of the Year 2008)
Auckland City - Players to Watch:
- James Pritchett (defender)
- Ivan Vicelich (midfielder)
- Keryn Jordan (forward)
Atlante - Players to Watch:
- Federico Vilar (goalkeeper)
- Daniel Arreola (Defender)
- Gabriel Pereyra (midfielder)
- Christian Bermudez (midfielder) - Tiny player but a tough player to mark
- Luis Gabriel Rey (forward)
- Rafael Marquez (forward) - This Rafa, is not prone to as many errors as another Rafa :whistling:
Club Estudiantes - Players to Watch:
- Leandro Desabato (defender)
- Cristian Cellay (defender)
- Rodrigo Brana (midfielder)
- Juan Sebastian Veron (midfielder) - Yep, he's still around
- Mauro Boselli (forward) - Considered one of the best striker prospects in awhile
- Jose Luis Calderon (forward)
TP Mazembe - Players to Watch:
- Milota Kabangu (Defender)
- Basisila Lusadisu (Midfielder) - Very creative playmaker
- Kaluyituka Dioko (Midfielder - One of the stars, goalscorer
- Tresor Mputu Mabi (Midfielder) - MVP of the team & likely to get sold to a European club
This is a physical club that will have to adjust to how the whistle is blown outside of Africa yet they have a pipeline of talent for a small club from Congo.
Pohang Steelers FC - Players to Watch:
- Denilson (Yep, the Brasilian)
- Kim Hyung-il (Defender) - Tall, fast & aggressive.
- Choi Hyo-jin (Winger) - Dangerous
Pohang is not your typical defensive Asian side, they actually play an attractive brand of football with their Brasilian manager, Farias...I had a chance to see highlights of them in a pub recently, oddly enough...End to end stuff
This tournament is already underway and Estudiantes downed Pohang tonight, 2-1...Barcelona face Atlante from Mexico in the other semifinal tomorrow.
The Pohang match against Estudiantes bordered on comedy towards the end as they were reduced, generously, to 8 men...Denilson ended up as goalkeeper