It ain't over til it's over! Real Madrid outlast Borussia Dortmund to set up blockbuster PSG meeting

Real Madrid survived a late scare from Borussia Dortmund to claim a 3-2 victory in their 2025 FIFA Club World Cup quarter-final match on Saturday, setting up a mouthwatering match against Paris Saint-Germain with a spot in the final on the line.

Los Blancos got a pair of early goals from Gonzalo Garcia and Fran Garcia as they raced into the lead in Saturday's contest, a rematch of the 2024 UEFA Champions League final. However, Real Madrid did not have a comfortable finish in this match like they did in that European final.

Instead, Saturday's affair saw Dortmund pull to within a goal of the La Liga giants twice in stoppage time, which was punctuated by three total goals, a penalty, a red card and a pair of world-class moments from Kylian Mbappé and Thibaut Courtois.

Here are the key talking points from a match to remember at MetLife Stadium.

It's a Garcia thing

The suffocating heat at MetLife Stadium meant that whomever scored first on Saturday would be at a massive advantage, and Real Madrid made sure they were the ones who claimed the upper hand through a blazing start that saw two goals inside the first 20 minutes of play.

First it was Gonzalo Garcia, the young revelation of the tournament, who climbed into a tie atop the Golden Boot race with his fourth goal of the competition in the 10th minute. 

Then it was Fran Garcia, the team's incumbent left-back who joined wave after wave of Real Madrid attack in the first half as he notched an impressive strike of his own in the 20th minute. 

- Gonzalo and Fran each scored in the first half to put Madrid on top

The Garcias gave their side the cushion needed to take their foot off the gas in the second half as both teams tired under the New Jersey sun, and their contributions proved crucial given the stoppage time madness that came later.

It ain't over til it's over

The match had slowed to a crawl in the second half as Real Madrid were all too comfortable in the face of a meek Dortmund attack that seemed to have run out of ideas.

And then stoppage time hit.

A Maximilian Beier goal in the 92nd minute that came seemingly out of nowhere gave the Black and Yellow a faint hint of life, but it seemed to be snuffed out 90 seconds later thanks to a spectacular Mbappé strike.

However, the football gods were not through with this match yet as Dean Huijsen committed a red-card worthy infraction inside the penalty area just over a minute later that gave Serhou Guirassy the opportunity to step up to the spot and drill a shot past Courtois.

Suddenly just a goal from sending the match to extra time, Dortmund stormed back down the pitch and forced Courtois into a world-class save with the literal last action of the contest.

It was a wild ending to a game that, just a few minutes earlier, appeared to be fizzling out.

Mbappé the difference-maker

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Mbappé's recent illness has robbed stateside fans of seeing one of the world's most feared players at his full powers for much of this tournament, but the France superstar has slowly been gaining fitness and he has come into the last couple of Real Madrid matches to big applause from appreciative crowds.

His absence from earlier games has allowed 21-year-old Gonzalo Garcia to stake a claim in the squad, but there's no doubt that Mbappé tops the pecking order for Real Madrid attackers when he is at full strength.

And while manager Xabi Alonso says it will still be another week or two before Mbappé is back to 100%, the 26-year-old provided a reminder of his prowess deep into stoppage time with an outrageous overhead volley that restored his team's two-goal advantage — albeit temporarily.

Regardless of what happened after Mbappé audacious strike, the mere possibility of him pulling out such tricks at any given time is a game-changer on its own. Seeing it in action is a treat no matter who you support.

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