Carlos Salcido: Guadalajara captain targets 'dream' clash with Real Madrid at Fifa Club World Cup in UAE

The Mexican side can face the European champions if they beat Kashima Antlers in the quarter-finals on December 15

Guadalajara´s Carlos Salcido has high hopes for the Fifa Club World Cup. AFP

Club Deportivo Guadalajara captain Carlos Salcido has experienced a lot in a professional career spanning 17 years.

He has represented his national team, Mexico, 124 times, appearing at three successive World Cup finals between 2006 and 2014. In between that run, he won Olympic gold, excelling as one of Mexico's overage players to provide a key role in the success at the London Games.

Having forged his reputation at Guadalajara, Salcido spent five seasons in Holland with PSV Eindhoven, winning the Eredivisie twice and contesting the Uefa Champions League. He even featured for Fulham in the English Premier League.

However, now back at his hometown club, Salcido has recorded what he believes to be one of his most notable achievements in the sport. Guadalajara, more commonly known as “Chivas”, will next month contest the Fifa Club World Cup in the UAE, made possible by their victory, on penalties, against MLS side Toronto FC in the Concacaf Champions League final earlier this year.

In standing tall during the shootout, Chivas clinched the title for the first time in 56 years.

Now, a potential match-up against Real Madrid, the two-time defending champions, is in the offing. Clearly, the 38-year-old defender has a few more accomplishments to notch before calling time on his career.

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“This achievement is among the most important in my career,” Salcido says. “I’ve had the chance to play international tournaments with the Mexican national squad or with my previous teams when I played in the Uefa Champions League. These are always important tournaments, but this tournament has something special.

"It is the Club World Cup. Just as its name says, only the best teams in the world get to go. The truth is that this is one of the biggest milestones in my professional career as a football player.”

Chivas are only one match away from that encounter with Madrid. They begin their Club World Cup quest against Japan's Kashima Antlers, the newly crowned Asian champions, in the quarter-final at Al Ain's Hazza bin Zayed Stadium on December 15. Come through that, and a marquee clash with Madrid, at Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi four days later, is theirs.

"My aspirations for the tournament is to win the tournament if we manage to play the final," Salcido says. "We are all hoping to play all the matches and to be there at the final. I would love to face Real Madrid. They are simply one of the best teams in the world. I can say that playing against them is one my biggest dreams."

Salcido is adamant his side won’t be awed by what lies ahead in the Emirates. Chivas are Mexican champions – last season, they captured the La Liga MX title for the 12th time in their history – and displayed their mettle by coming through the shootout against Toronto in April to add the continental crown. It was a first since 1962.

Admittedly, they have struggled this year and currently sit 11th domestically, but still, Chivas are determined to stick to their principles for their Club World Cup debut.

“The preparation for the tournament will be exactly the same," Salcido says. “Chivas do not change their playing style, however there will obviously be an extra motivation. We want to go the tournament and win it.

“We know that we’ll go there, and we’ll be playing against the best and you need to prepare for that. However, our game methodology won’t change a lot. We go out to win matches. We are ready to play in the same level to any team in the competition and we are going to prepare with a lot of hope and with the clear objective of transcending even more in our careers.”

Should Chivas provide a strong showing, the feat would be made even more remarkable by the fact their recent success has been achieved with a squad comprising only players born in Mexico.

“It is always a big thrill to compete against the best teams in the world, and the Fifa Club World Cup will be a memorable occasion for all connected with Chivas, more so with a team made up exclusively of Mexican players,” says Salcido, who hopes to feed off a vociferous backing when the team run out in the UAE.

“My message to all the Chivas fans out there would be to continue supporting us. Every time we achieve important things they are an essential part of our team. Support always drives us to give an extra something on the pitch.

“We can assure them that we will try to place Chivas and Mexico’s name as high as possible. Continue supporting and most of all enjoy watching the team play in an international tournament. To all of our supporters: share our aspirations, which is to have a memorable role in the championship.”

Taking place in the Emirates for the second successive year, the Club World Cup brings together the six continental champions and a representative team from the host country.

Thus far only one slot remains for the December 12-22 event, with UAE champions Al Ain, New Zealand's Team Wellington and Tunisia’s Esperance already competing alongside Chivas, Madrid and Kashima. The winner of the Copa Libertadores, either Argentina’s Boca Juniors or River Plate, will seal the final spot later this month.