Mexican club Pachuca routed local team Al Jazira 4-1 to finish third at the FIFA Club World Cup, their best ever result in the football tournament.
In their fourth appearance at the Club World Cup here on Saturday evening, Pachuca surpassed their previous best result from 2008, when the club finished fourth, reports Efe news agency.
Pachuca also equalled the best result by a Mexican club at the tournament, with Necaxa and Monterrey being the only other teams from that country to achieve a third-place finish.
The Mexican club took the lead in the 37th minute at the Zayed Sports City Stadium when Jonathan Urretaviscaya took advantage of some shabby defending by Al Jazira and poked the ball past goalkeeper Khaled al-Senani from inside the penalty area.
But a drop in intensity by the 2016-2017 CONCACAF Champions League winners at the start of the second half paved the way for the local team to draw level.
Khalfan Mubarak got Al Jazira on the board with a close range shot in the 57th minute, finishing off a move during which the United Arab Emirates league winners had numerous chances to score.
Al Jazira's happiness was short lived, as Pachuca's Franco Jara scored his team's second goal four minutes later after receiving a perfectly placed pass from Angelo Sagal.
One minute after taking the field, 17-year-old Roberto de la Rosa scored the third goal in the 79th minute after a total breakdown in Al Jazira's defence, while Sagal capped off Pachuca's comfortable win by converting a penalty in the 84th minute.
--IANS
ajb/bg
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