Earlier in the day, Real Madrid defeated Pachuca 3-1, eliminating the Liga MX club. But with the tie between Al Hilal and Salzburg, the group’s spots in the knockout round remained up for grabs.
Salzburg will face a challenging match against Real Madrid in Philadelphia on Thursday with Kylian Mbappe likely return after missing Real Madrid’s first two matches, according to coach Xabi Alonso. Al Hilal will face Pachuca in Nashville the same day.
Al Hilal, the runners up at the 2022 Club World Cup, pressured Salzburg from the start, with nearly 62 percent possession through the first half. They took 10 shots, but had just one on target. For the game, Al Hilal had four shots on goal.
It was clear that Al Hilal was missing the finishing touch of striker Aleksandar Mitrovic, who has missed both of the team’s Club World Cup matches with a muscle injury.