Football & Tactics

⚽ Fluminense 2–1 Al Hilal — Quarter-Final Recap

📅 Date & Venue

When: July 4, 2025

Where: Camping World Stadium, Orlando — crowd of ~43,000 

👟 Goals & Key Moments

40′ – Matheus Martinelli opens the scoring with a thunderous left‑foot strike into the top corner  

51′ – Marcos Leonardo equalizes with a close‑range tap‑in from a corner  

70′ – Hércules, off the bench, scuffs a long-range effort, gathers the rebound, and slams it home for the winner  

🧱 Tactical Breakdown

Fluminense

Held firm with a veteran backline and controlled tempo early  

Subtle shift: key sub Hércules turned the game after his introduction  

Al Hilal

Pressed heavily after conceding, averaging 53.7% possession and piling in 31 corners  

Their big chance came with a penalty call, which was overturned after VAR review  

🧊 Key Insights & Stats

Team Possession Shots Corners Clearances Notable Performance

Fluminense ~46% 10 4 19 Fábio’s veteran goalkeeping  

Al Hilal ~54% 14 12 — Koulibaly’s aerial dominance 

Man of the Match:

Kalidou Koulibaly (Al Hilal) — solid defensively and assisted the equalizer  

🎯 Boss Verdict

A full-on quarter-final thriller:

Fluminense’s grit and a timely substitution won it.

Al Hilal poured forward after the break but lacked clinical finishing.

Tactical Takeaway:

Veteran discipline and a game-changing sub (Hércules) edged out a pressure-heavy but blunt Al Hilal.