Defending FIFA Club World Cup champions Manchester City FC are one of the odds-on favorites to leave MetLife Stadium with the trophy once again next month. After cruising through the group stage, they now face a knockout round test when they face 19-time Saudi Pro League champions Al-Hilal SFC.
Tonight will be the first-ever meeting between two of the most successful clubs in their respective countries. Here are five things you should know going into this 2025 FIFA Club World Cup Round of 16 matchup.
Oliver Strand
1. Man City's offense doesn’t sleep
Manchester City looked like a well-oiled machine in the group stage, casting doubt on the idea that European teams don’t care about this competition.
Through the three group stage games, Man City scored 13 goals while only allowing two, with the latter coming against Italian powerhouse and Group G runner-up Juventus. What's more, nine different players made it on the scoresheet as City rotates its roster constantly.
2025 FIFA Club World Cup | Every Manchester City Group Stage Goal
Superstar Erling Haaland got on the board twice, though neither goal looked particularly good. The first came off a penalty kick against Al Ain FC, and the second was a clumsy-looking tap-in off a no-look pass from Matheus Nunes that was his 300th career goal.
It doesn’t take long for Man City to score, either. Since midfielder Phil Foden found the goal in the second minute against Wydad AC, his team has scored within the first ten minutes in all three group stage games.
It remains to be seen if Manchester can continue to manhandle opponents like this moving forward in the competition. They will likely be without winger Claudio Echeverri, who seemingly injured his ankle after scoring his first goal for the club against Al Ain. Team manager Pep Guardiola has revealed he will be out for two to three weeks.
2. Al-Hilal: Asia’s last hope
The teams representing the Asian Football Confederation haven’t had the best time at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Of the four that qualified, Al-Hilal is the only one left standing.
The other Asian teams include Japan's Urawa Red Diamonds, and South Korea's Ulsan HD FC, who were both winless in the group stage. Both Al-Hilal and Al Ain FC of the United Arab Emirates earned one win in the group stage, but Al-Hilal’s two draws were enough to lift it into the knockout stage.
Overall, no Asian team has ever won the FCWC, but three have made it to the finals and finished as the runner-up since the tournament began in 2000. One of those was Al-Hilal in 2022, who made a run to the final before losing to Real Madrid 5-3.
Six players remain from that match three years ago in Morocco.
2022 FIFA Club World Cup Morocco Final | Real Madrid vs Al Hilal Highlights
3. Man City trophyless in 2025?
The 2024/25 season was a near-trophyless one for Manchester City, minus a lone Community Shield win at the start of the season. This go around, City looks to have the means to become the second-ever team to repeat as world champions in club soccer.
Winners of six of the last eight English Premier League titles, it is rare to see Man City without a proper trophy in a single season. Besides the shield, which for all intents and purposes is a friendly between the previous season’s champions (shoutout to the superior Campeones Cup in North America), the side was eliminated from all other competitive competitions this season.
A disappointing 3rd Place finish in the Premier League was exacerbated by a humiliating loss to Crystal Palace FC in the FA Cup Final. A first-half goal from winger Eberechi Eze, and a penalty save by goalkeeper Dean Henderson, gave the South London club their first-ever major trophy at the expense of Man City.
Those were the closest moments for City to win anything in 2024/25, who lost their second game in the EFL Cup to Tottenham Hotspur by the score of 2-1, and couldn’t qualify for the Champions League knockout phase after losing to Real Madrid 6-3 on aggregate.
Winning a second-ever FIFA Club World Cup could be the saving grace on a lost season. A repeat championship would also come with more public distinction this time around.
A brand-new FIFA Club World Cup winners badge will adorn the shirts of the champions of the revamped 32-team tournament for a full four-year period. This will coincide with the new quadrennial format of the competition, which replaces the previous yearly format.
4. An aging Al-Hilal
Al-Hilal’s roster is showing its age during this tournament. The youngest player to see the field has been Brazilian striker Marcos Leonardo (22), who accounted for one of the team’s three goals all tournament.
Many of the players who have seen the pitch for the Saudi Arabia club in the Club World Cup are over the age of 30. The team made waves by signing Neymar a few years ago (he only made seven appearances for the team before returning to boyhood club Santos), and Al-Hilal continues to sign familiar names.
Their squad for this FIFA Club World Cup includes Napoli legend and Senegal National Team center-back Kalidou Koulibaly, Brazil national team left-back Renan Lodi, longtime Lazio midfielder Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Serbian striker Aleksandar Mitrovic, and former Man City fullback João Cancelo.
But Al-Hilal is seeing players go down with injuries. No amount of money, even from a team controlled by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund with its estimated worth of nearly $100 billion, can stop the human body from breaking down. After a shocking draw against Real Madrid in its first match this tournament, Al-Hilal hasn’t looked organized or dangerous.
Despite the numerous youth players on its roster, Al-Hilal hasn’t elected to use many of them in this competition. That leaves little wiggle room for replacements should some of the better-known players falter against City.
Michael Battista
5. Man City's rotation
Man City has not been afraid to change up its roster this tournament. In total, 24 different players have started for the defending champions thus far.
But Haaland is in a tough spot. He started the game against Juventus on the bench and came on to score the game-winner as a sub, but head coach Pep Guardiola could once again put Omar Marmoush in the Starting XI. Or he could save Marmoush for the Quarterfinals, and play Haaland tonight in Orlando.
Others, like recent signing Rayan Cherki, might get the nod. After getting his first start in the team’s first game of the competition, the 21-year-old French national team midfielder has been used as a bench option. That hasn’t slowed him down. In the last game against Juventus, Cherki was impressive when he came on with only 15 minutes left to play. His quick movement got the crowd of over 50,000 on their feet as he helped push Manchester City into the box multiple times.
Overall, Guardiola and his team know they will be facing either a challenge Inter Milan or a hot Fluminense FC in the Quarterfinals on July 4th. Rotation vs guaranteeing an easy win with a starter-heavy squad will be the big question on Monday.
