Javier Mascherano, the coach of Inter Miami, praised Al Ahly, confirming the difficulty of the opening match against the Reds.

Al Ahly will face Inter Miami in the early hours of Sunday in the first round of the 2025 Club World Cup.

Mascherano said in the press conference about facing Al Ahly: "I have said before that Al Ahly is one of the biggest teams in Africa and they are the team that regularly wins the local league title."

He added: "We know they have made several signings and brought in good players like Trezeguet and others, and they have changed their head coach; he is a new coach with experience and has worked in South Africa for 3 years."

He continued: "But the team we will see tomorrow may be different from what we have seen before due to the many changes in the team, which makes it difficult to think about what we will do."

He added: "We are ready for everything and for the competition; it will be a difficult but good match."

Regarding the chances of winning the title, he replied: "I will not be hypocritical; it is natural for a European team to win the Club World Cup title due to the quality of the players. In these tournaments, surprises happen sometimes, so why can't we be the surprise? Now it is clear that we are not at the level of competition."

He concluded about the absences, saying: "Jordi Alba will not be present in the first match, and we hope for the return of injured players before the second match."