Inter Milan overcame River Plate 2-0 in a heated clash, while Monterrey thumped Urawa Reds 4-0 to enter the knockouts.
Mexican club Monterrey have booked a spot in the knockout rounds of the Club World Cup with a thumping 4-0 win over Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds at the Rose Bowl.
Three goals in eight first-half minutes sent the side on their way to victory on Wednesday, as they claimed second place in Group E behind Inter Milan, whose 2-0 victory over River Plate eased some nerves for the European giants.
Stunning long-range strikes from Nelson Deossa and Jesus Corona came either side of German Berterame’s cool finish to set up Monterrey a last 16 meeting with Borussia Dortmund.
Deossa put Monterrey in front on the half-hour mark with a swerving long-range shot and Berterame doubled the advantage four minutes later.
Corona added the third with the pick of the goals from distance in the 38th minute before Berterame scored the fourth in second-half stoppage time.
“I’m really very happy we’re in the next stage,” said Monterrey coach Domenec Torrent.
“We’re very happy because we have a clean sheet , it’s not easy in this group especially with the group that we had.”
Meanwhile, Inter Milan kept their cool to beat nine-man and eliminate River Plate, booking a knockout tie against Fluminense.
The Champions League runners-up faced a tough battle in Seattle against an aggressive River Plate side, who had Lucas Martinez and Gonzalo Montiel sent off in front of 45,000 fans at Lumen Field.
Francesco Esposito scored his first Inter goal to put the Italians ahead and Alessandro Bastoni made the game safe later on for Christian Chivu’s side.
“In the first half we were surprised by their intensity, aggression and pressure,” said Chivu.
“Then in the second half we raised our level of intensity… We’re strong, confident and have players who can play such a game.”
With Monterrey ahead against Urawa, River needed a winner to progress, but their job got harder when Martinez was sent off after 66 minutes for hacking down veteran Henrikh Mkhitaryan.
Six minutes later teenage striker Esposito steered home the opener to leave River on the brink.
Bastoni ensured Inter’s progress as he drilled home, before River’s Gonzalo Montiel picked up a second yellow and was dismissed.
There were ugly scenes at the end as River fans threw objects at Inter players leaving the pitch.
Both Argentinian teams at the tournament, River and their rivals Boca Juniors, have been eliminated despite their fans creating vibrant atmospheres.
“It’s a shame for all the people who came en masse to watch the team that we couldn’t give them the chance to keep going,” said disappointed River coach Marcelo Gallardo.
Also in Group F, Fluminense could only draw 0-0 against South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns, but it was enough to claim second place behind Dortmund, who defeated Ulsan HD 1-0 to claim top spot in Group F.
Sundowns’ exit means none of the four African clubs who came to the tournament will feature in the last 16, but their performances mean they can go home with their heads held high.
“We leave and go home with our heads up because we are much stronger than we were when we came here,” said the South African champions’ coach, Miguel Cardoso.
On Thursday, Manchester City face Juventus in a battle for top spot in Group G, while Spanish giants Real Madrid face RB Salzburg as they bid to progress from Group H.
