FIFA pin faith on 'new' tournament

FIFA have pinned their faith on this week's revamped Club World Championship after the embarrassing collapse of the tournament's forerunner.

The six-team competition begins today but is unlikely to heat up until English club Liverpool and Brazil's Sao Paulo join the fray at the semi-final stage.

Liverpool's mindset could prove key to the tournament's success as the champions of Europe have already played 29 matches this season before flying to the Far East.

Rafael Benitez's side beat Middle-sbrough 2-0 at Anfield yesterday before flying to Japan to play either Sydney FC or Costa Rica's Deportivo Saprissa on December 15.

FIFA staged the first world club championship five years ago in Brazil but pulled the plug on the competition in 2001 after the collapse of marketing partner ISMM/ISL.

The risk of player burn-out before next year's World Cup in Germany is a real one for Liverpool's players, whose season began against tiny Welsh club Total Network Solutions in July.

However, it would be a major embarrassment for FIFA if Liverpool and Sao Paulo do not meet in a showpiece Club World Championship final in Yokohama next Sunday.

Sao Paulo's squad arrived in Tokyo last Wednesday to acclimatise before facing the winners of today's curtain raiser between Egypt's Al Ahly and Saudi club Al Ittihad.

The South American champions were mobbed by Brazilian fans upon arrival causing brief panic for airport security.

Japan has proved a happy hunting ground for Sao Paulo, who won the World Club Cup - the tournament's forerunner, involving the champions of Europe and South America - in 1992 and 1993. Liverpool were beaten 3-0 by Brazil's Flamengo in 1981 and 1-0 by Argentina's Independiente in 1984.

Al Ahly could provide a shock as they look to extend a remarkable 55-match unbeaten run stretching back to July 2004.

FIFA ban

Al Ittihad's hopes suffered a blow yesterday after they had Brazilian trio Pedrinho, Marcao and Lima banned from the tournament after FIFA said the Saudi club had not properly registered them in time.

FIFA ruled the players were ineligible to play in the six-team competition after an investigation prompted by an official protest by African champions Al Ahly.

Ittihad's Romanian coach Anghel Iordanescu had accused Al Ahly of playing mind games by complaining about the eligibility of the Brazilian players.