RUN SB/STH CLOSE
Meaning of RUN SB/STH CLOSE in English
( BrE ) to be nearly as good, fast, successful, etc. as sb/sth else :
Germany ran Argentina very close in the final.
Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.
Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.
2005