Yasuhito Endo scored the lone goal Sunday to lead Gamba Osaka to a 1-0 win over Adelaide United and a semifinal showdown with Manchester United at the Club World Cup. Endo, the MVP of the Asian Champions League, scored in the 23rd minute, taking a knock down from substitute Ryuji Bando and firing between the legs of Adelaide goalkeeper Eugene Galekovic. “Endo got the opening goal and that allowed us to calm down,” said Gamba coach Akira Nishino. “The team passed the ball well tonight, we controlled the flow of play in the second half and I'm proud of my team.” European champion Manchester United received a bye to the semifinal stage and will arrive in Japan on Monday ahead of Thursday's match with Gamba. Adelaide, which lost 5-0 on aggregate to Gamba in last month's Asian Champions League final, came close to opening the scoring in the 14th minute when captain Travis Dodd won a challenge to head the ball into his own path, cut in and out of two covering defenders only to shoot wide in what would have been a fine individual goal. Gamba, which becomes the second Japanese team to reach the last four of the intercontinental tournament after Urawa Reds last year, went ahead when Endo instinctively ran to the drop of the ball in the area and slotted calmly into the net. Dodd hit the bar with a looping header, yet Gamba held the lead at the break. The Japanese club, urged on by its home fans, created the more meaningful chances in the second half but could not extend their lead. It almost paid the price in added time. Adelaide substitute Robert Younis turned onto a well-struck volley from 30-yards which went just the wrong side of the post. Then in the final seconds, Dodd headed just wide with the goalkeeper beaten. “I thought we played a good game and probably deserved more than we got,” said Adelaide coach Aurelio Vidmar. “But Gamba is very quick. They don't give you much time on the ball and that was the difference in the game.” Mexico's Pachuca defeated Egypt's Al-Ahly on Saturday and will meet South American champion Liga de Quito of Ecuador on Wednesday in the other semifinal.
