Before a possible match against Barcelona in the Club World Cup final, River Plate must get past the locals. The Copa Libertadores champion will take on Sanfrecce Hiroshima in the semifinals Wednesday, a team that has already won two games in the competition without conceding a goal. "They are the best team in Japan," River Plate coach Marcelo Gallardo said Tuesday. "They are very good at controlling the ball, they play at a high quality and are extremely resilient." Sanfrecce, bidding to become the first Asian team to reach the final, beat Oceania representative Auckland City 2-0 Thursday before a 3-0 victory over African champion TP Mazembe Sunday. River Plate, which won the tournament in 1986 when it was known as the Intercontinental Cup, was in Japan in August when it beat Gamba Osaka 3-0 in a match between the reigning champion of the J-League Cup and the Copa Sudamericana. "I have seen incredible growth and development in Japanese soccer," Gallardo said. "When we played here in August the opposition was speedy and technically skilled. I expect Hiroshima to be at the same level." The winner of Wednesday's match will face either Barcelona or Chinese champion Guangzhou Evergrande in the final on Dec. 20. "Over the last year we have won a lot of titles," Gallardo said. "Being in the Club World Cup is the icing on the cake." Although Sanfrecce will have the home advantage Wednesday, a large contingent of River Plate fans made the journey to show their support. "It shows we have passionate supporters and we will feed off that," Gallardo said. "We're representing Argentina." The tournament, which features the top clubs from FIFA's six continental confederations plus the champion of the host country, returns to Japan for the first time since 2012. It was hosted in Morocco the previous two years. The other match sees Congo's TP Mazembe take on Mexican side Club America. Neymar absent Injured striker Neymar sat out training for a second straight day Tuesday as Barcelona prepared for its Club World Cup semifinal. Neymar now looks unlikely to play for the European champion, which is seeking a third Club World Cup crown, against Asian champion Guangzhou Evergrande of China. He sustained a groin injury in training last week ahead of the Champions League match with Bayer Leverkusen. Guangzhou Evergrande, coached by Neymar's Brazilian compatriot Luiz Felipe Scolari, is on a 28-match unbeaten run and beat Club America of Mexico in the previous round. But European champion Barcelona is only just getting to know about its Chinese rival.
