Odion Ighalo was in action and helped his Saudi Arabia club Al-Hilal stun Brazil giants Flamengo 3-2 in the semi-final of the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup in Tuesday night.
The famous win means Al-Hilal are the first-ever club from Saudi Arabia to reach the competition’s final.
Odion Ighalo was named in Al-Hilal’s starting eleven before going off in the 57th minute.
Al-Hilal will potentially face Real Madrid in the final, with the Champions League holders in action against Al Ahly of Egypt on Wednesday.
Salem Al Dawsari’s perfectly placed spot-kick gave Al-Hilal the lead in the first minutes of the match after Matheuzinho tripped Luciano Vietto inside the box.
Pedro equalised for Flamengo with a close-range strike in the 20th minute but Al-Hilal regained the lead just before half-time as Al Dawsari again converted from the spot, with Gerson sent off for a second booking after stomping on Vietto in the penalty area.
With Flamengo reduced to 10 men for the entire second half, Al-Hilal controlled the tempo and eventually scored the third, when Al Dawsari returned the favour to Vietto, putting the ball on a plate for the Argentinian to score with a point-blank strike.
Pedro’s close-range range effort in added time was too little to late for Flamengo, who became only the sixth Copa Libertadores champions not to advance to the final.