BBC SPORT | Football | A different world



By Tim Vickery BBC Sport Online in Cuidad del Leste, Paraguay

Olimpia of Paraguay gave everything they had, came close on a number of occasions and can be proud of their performance.

Real Madrid produced some exhuberant moments of crowd pleasing magic on their way to a 2-0 win.

Real capture world crown

But the good news from Tokyo was the final of the World Club Cup was an excellent spectacle.

The better news is that the date is now firmly established in football's calendar.

Many Paraguayan youngsters will have been inspired to work on their game

Originally the champions of Europe and South America met on a home and away basis.

But there was so much gamesmanship and so many unsavoury incidents that the idea lost credibility, and the Europeans became reluctant to compete.

Then when the match was first staged in Tokyo the Europeans tended to arrogantly treat it as nothing more than an exhibition game.

Which was an insult to their opponents, for whom the match is nothing less than the highpoint of the club calendar.

Winning in Tokyo still means more to the South Americans, but the European teams now take the game seriously.

It has become a title that both sides want to win, and the occasion is all the better for it.

The bad news, though, is that it is becoming increasingly difficult for the South American teams to compete on equal terms.

In seven of the last eight years the title has gone to Europe, a clear reflection of the economic chasm between the two continents.

Clockwatch: All the action as it happened

Where Real Madrid have a subs bench full of star names, Olimpia were forced to improvise in the selection of their starting line-up.

Coach Nery Pumpido felt compelled to push his outstanding defender Julio Cesar Caceres into a midfield role.

Caceres was reluctant and made his position clear on the eve of the game.

Luis Figo (left) and Ronaldo celebrate the opening goal
Real have spent huge sums in the last few years

"In the end I agreed to do it for the good of the team. I didn't want to at first, but now the decision is taken," he said.

"What I regret is that a lot of agents want to see me at centre-back, so I just hope that this change doesn't harm my career."

It is a quote which speaks volumes about the current state of South American football.

Caceres wanted his team to win. But his longer term objective was to use the game as a shop window for himself and seal a transfer to Europe.

The club game in South America has been hijacked by the process of selling players across the Atlantic.

Clubs want to sell to pay off their debts. In many cases directors want to sell to cream off some of the profit.

And players want to go to earn more money, further their careers and bask in the spotlight.

The point is amply illustrated by the Real Madrid team.

The Argentine Cambiasso was excellent in midfield, and the opening goal came from the Brazilian combination of a Roberto Carlos pass and a Ronaldo shot.

I watched the game in Cuidad del Leste, a grim trading town on the border with Brazil.

Even at 7.15 in the morning the city is alive with stall-holders setting up their wares.

Stirring way

And all over the city thousands of Paraguayans huddled round TVs in bars and cafes to cheer on their country's premier team.

Despite Olimpia's gutsy performance there was a feeling of resignation, an acceptance that sooner or later Real would make extra class tell.

When Guti scored the late second goal many filed quietly out into the streets to begin their daily business.

Despite the defeat the quality of the game made it a stirring way to start the day.

Many Paraguayan youngsters will have been inspired to work on their game.

But if they develop into something special, their future will almost certainly lie on the other side of the Atlantic.

Real's victory in pictures


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