We had seen the signs at the end of last season, but the Club World Cup provided further proof. Manchester City is back on top: after a rough year where nothing went right between injuries and identity issues, Pep Guardiola’s guys sent some strong signals in the group stage of the international tournament going on in the US, thanks to some big investments by the owners since January. in just a few months, City has spent around $350 million, bringing players such as Marmoush, Ait-Nouri, Nico Gonzalez, Cherki, and Reijnders to Manchester, who have immediately given the Catalan coach a big hand.
In the Club World Cup, the Cityzens dominated Group G, finishing with a perfect record: after victories over Wydad Casablanca (2-0) and Al-Ain (6-0), they also thrashed Juventus (2-5), overtaking the Bianconeri and avoiding a clash with Real Madrid in the round of 16.
What a test for the ambitious Saudis
The five goals scored against the Old Lady allowed City to overtake Bayern in the special goalscoring rankings: they have 13 in total, but Haaland and his teammates are also ahead in terms of shots and xG. This overwhelming offensive power is cause for concern for their next opponent, Simone Inzaghi’s Al-Hilal. Despite the limited time available, the former Inter coach seems to have already found a certain chemistry with a group of players who are certainly not lacking in talent.
The Riyadh club finished second in Group H behind Real Madrid, drawing their first two games (1-1 with Los Blancos and 0-0 with Salzburg) and beating Mexican side Pachuca (2-0) in the decisive match – despite a less than encouraging performance – a result that saw them overtake Salzburg and qualify. The defensive statistics are encouraging for Inzaghi (only one goal conceded), but only up to a point, given that the xG and total shots conceded – 4.62 and 15 respectively – do not paint a particularly bright picture in terms of possession.
Odds comparison
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The prediction
Al-Hilal has several quality players who arrived in Riyadh in the last two years thanks to some great offers, but it will be difficult for Inzaghi’s men to keep up with a Manchester City side that is inspired and determined to return to the levels of two years ago. The Cityzens’ victory does not seem to be in doubt: in the three games played so far, Guardiola’s team has always broken the deadlock in the first 10 minutes, and we expect a storming start this time too. At least three goals in total.
Probable lineups for Manchester City-Al Hilal
MANCHESTER CITY (4-3-3): Ederson; Akanji, Ruben Dias, Gvardiol, Ait-Nouri; Reijnders, Rodri, Bernardo Silva; Savinho, Haaland, Doku.
AL-HILAL (4-2-3-1): Bounou; Joao Cancelo, Koulibaly, Al Tambakti, Renan Lodi; Ruben Neves, N. Al-Dawsari; Malcom, Milinkovic-Savic, Kanno; Marcos Leonardo.