- Facundo Colidio, Sebastian Driussi and Maximiliano Meza scored for River Plate in Seattle
- Urawa briefly closed the gap to 2:1 through a Yusuke Matsuo penalty after foul by Marcos Acuna
- River’s Group E also includes Inter Milan and Monterrey
Key Takeaways:
Argentine giants River Plate began their campaign at the Club World Cup in the United States with a victory. In Seattle, Los Millonarios beat Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds 3:1 in a Group E encounter also featuring Italian side Inter and Mexican team Monterrey.
📊 ¡Las posiciones del Grupo de @RiverPlate en el@FIFACWC!
CONMEBOL #Libertadores #GloriaEterna #FIFACWC pic.twitter.com/a4Rkbi3tGu
— CONMEBOL Libertadores (@Libertadores) June 18, 2025
The score was opened by Facundo Colidio, who gave the 38-time Argentine champions the lead in the 12th minute. Defender Marcos Acuna delivered a cross from the left wing, and Colidio, left unmarked, headed in from around six metres. River could have gone ahead even earlier, but a shot from Sebastian Driussi hit the post just three minutes before the goal.
The only other notable moment in the first half came in the 33rd minute when a goal by Urawa’s Markus Hojbraten was ruled out for offside.
River Plate dominated the early stages of the second half and doubled their lead in the 48th minute. Driussi took advantage of a defensive error on a back pass towards the Japanese goalkeeper and headed home for 2:0.
Urawa managed to respond quickly. In the 56th minute, referee Felix Zwayer awarded a penalty after a foul by Acuna, which Yusuke Matsuo converted to make it 2:1.
However, any hope of a comeback was short-lived. Fifteen minutes from time, Maximiliano Meza rose highest after a corner from Acuna and scored with a header to make it 3:1.