Kashiwa prevail over Auckland City 2-0

Kashiwa Reysol will play Monterrey of Mexico in the next round of the Club World Cup after the Japanese champions outclassed part-timers Auckland City 2-0 Thursday in front of a sparse crowd. The New Zealanders were under pressure from the off against the side representing the host nation, but managed to hold firm until late in the first-half, when a quick-fire double ended the game as a contest.Kashiwa, who only claimed the J-League title at the weekend, will take on the Mexicans, the CONCACAF champions, on Sunday, again at the impressive 36,000 Toyota Stadium, which had rows of empty seats for this play-off.“We won the championship at the weekend so had some parties and celebrations, and only had one day to prepare,” said Kashiwa’s silver-haired Brazilian coach Nelsinho.“It was our international debut and we were not able to play our usual game. We can play much better than this, but because it was our time we were greatly affected by that.”