The FIFA Club World Cup semifinal saw Real Madrid take on Al Sadd.
Real Madrid started the match in a 4-3-3 Formation, which was clearly the formation Ancelotti had been experimenting with all along.
The old 4-2-3-1 was more balanced, but the 4-3-3 was more attacking.
Casillas was in goal, with Maxwell, Vermaelen, Ramos, and Arbeloa across the back. Javi Martínez sat in front of the defense, with David Silva and Modrić in central midfield. The Trident up front consisted of Yang Yang, Ibrahimovic, and Di Maria.
Real Madrid took firm control of possession and the tempo from the very start. The gap in quality between the two sides was simply too great.
Yang Yang was not even playing at full intensity. He was completely relaxed. In the twenty-fifth minute, he crossed from the left edge of the penalty area, and Di Maria, arriving from deep on the right, struck a superb Volley into the net.
In the forty-third minute, Real Madrid launched another attack from deep. David Silva fed the ball through the middle, and Di Maria unleashed another left-footed shot from the edge of the box, breaking through Al Sadd's goal once more. Two-nil.
After the halftime switch, Yang Yang played a through ball through the middle, and Modrić scored one-on-one. Three-nil.
David Silva then sent a through ball, and Maxwell scored with a long-range shot from a tight angle, making it four-nil.
That scoreline held until the final whistle. Real Madrid defeated Al Sadd by four goals and smoothly advanced to the FIFA Club World Cup final.
Three days later, at the same time, they were back at Yokohama International Stadium.
The FIFA Club World Cup final saw Real Madrid face Santos.
Real Madrid completely seized the initiative from the opening whistle, pressing Santos and