The continental champions of Europe and South America lock horns in the 20th FIFA Club World Cup final as Manchester City face Fluminense at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah on Friday night.
While the reigning Champions League holders beat Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan to advance to the showpiece event, the current Copa Libertadores champions defeated Al Ahly of Egypt in their semi-final clash.
Match preview
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Following a difficult spell of form on the domestic front, winning just one of their last six Premier League games, Man City dusted themselves down and put Urawa Red Diamonds to the sword 3-0 in the semi-finals on Tuesday, securing safe passage through to the Club World Cup final in their first-ever appearance at the tournament.
The Citizens initially struggled to penetrate the low block of Urawa, but they eventually made the breakthrough courtesy of an own goal from Marius Hoibraten on the stroke of half time, before second-half strikes from Mateo Kovacic and Bernardo Silva helped Pep Guardiola's side ease to victory.
Just hours after Tuesday's win, Man City were named Team of the Year at the 2023 BBC Sports Personality of the Year awards, with the prestigious prize recognising the club's treble success and subsequent UEFA Super Cup triumph, and the Citizens are now on the cusp of creating more history as they are just one match away from becoming world champions as well as the first English club to win five trophies in a calendar year.
Success on Friday would also see Man City become the four English team after Manchester United (2008), Liverpool (2019) and Chelsea (2021) to win the Club World Cup, as well as the first to celebrate success in their inaugural appearance at the tournament.
Guardiola knows what it takes to win the Club World Cup having previously lifted the trophy on three occasions in charge of former clubs Barcelona (twice) and Bayern Munich; only Carlo Ancelotti has won as many as a manager.
The Catalan boss has encouraged his Man City players to get as much rest as possible ahead of their meeting with Fluminense and "create an environment" that will put them in the right frame of mind for another momentous occasion in the club's history on Friday.
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Just seven weeks on from lifting the Copa Libertadores for the first time in their 121-year history, Fluminense have punched their ticket to the Club World Cup final after beating Al Ahly 2-0 in the semi-finals on Monday.
Following a cagey first half, Jhon Arias opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 71st minute before John Kennedy – the match-winner in the Copa Libertadores final against Boca Juniors – came off the substitutes' bench to net a second for the Rio de Janeiro-based outfit in the last minute of normal time.
Fernando Diniz's side are now seeking to follow in the footsteps of fellow Brazilian side Corinthians, who were the last non-European team to win the Club World Cup when they secured a surprising 1-0 victory over Chelsea in 2012.
Fluminense ended the 2023 Brasileiro campaign in seventh place after winning 16, drawing eight and losing 14 of their 38 top-flight matches, suffering defeat to champions Palmeiras and runners-up Gremio in their final two fixtures, while they exited the Copa do Brasil at the last-16 stage to rivals Flamengo.
Nicknamed the 'Brazilian Guardiola', Diniz does not agree with such a comparison as he has branded his "positional" style of football as the direct opposite to that of the possession-based philosophy at Man City.
Nevertheless, the Tricolor boss – who is also the interim coach of the Brazil national team – is unfazed by the magnitude of Friday's final and is confident that his players have what it takes to cause an upset on the biggest stage.
Team News
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Man City trio Erling Haaland (foot), Kevin De Bruyne (hamstring) and Jeremy Doku (muscle) have all returned to training, but they are all ineligible for Friday's final as tournament regulations state that only the same 23 squad players selected for the semi-finals can feature in the showpiece event.
Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol will be pushing for recalls in a defence that is set to protect Brazilian goalkeeper Ederson, while both Kovacic and Matheus Nunes impressed in midfield on Tuesday and will hope to have done enough to retain their places in the first XI alongside Rodri.
However, Nunes could be the man sacrificed to allow Julian Alvarez to start up front, with Bernardo Silva and Phil Foden moving back into advanced midfield roles alongside Jack Grealish on the left.
As for Fluminense, they have a clean bill of health so Diniz will likely name the same lineup that began against Al Ahly, with 43-year-old goalkeeper Fabio set to become the oldest player to appear in the Club World Cup final.
Forty-year-old defender Felipe Melo is poised to become the oldest outfield player in the final, most likely partnering Nino at centre-back, while former Real Madrid left-back Marcelo is set to become the second player to participate in five Club World Cup finals after Toni Kroos (six).
In-demand midfielder Andre, who has been linked with a move to the Premier League, is expected to link arms with Matheus Martinelli in the engine room, while German Cano – who has scored an impressive 40 goals in 59 games for Fluminense in 2023 – could be supported in attack by Arias, Ganso and Keno.
Manchester City possible starting lineup:
Ederson; Walker, Stones, Dias, Gvardiol; Rodri, Kovacic; Bernardo, Foden, Grealish; Alvarez
Fluminense possible starting lineup:
Fabio; Xavier, Nino, Melo, Marcelo; Andre, Martinelli; Arias, Ganso, Keno; Cano
We say: Manchester City 3-1 Fluminense
If Man City wish to 'close the circle' on their recent trophy success, they must cut out the sloppy defensive errors made in Tuesday's win as they can ill-afford to make the same mistakes at the back against, on paper, a stronger opponent in Fluminense, who have the firepower up front to cause the Citizens problems.
Nevertheless, Guardiola's side will be considered as the overwhelming favourites to come out on top, even without the presence of Haaland, De Bruyne and Doku, and their energy in the final third could prove too much for Fluminense's aging backline that has kept just four clean sheets in their last 18 games across all competitions.
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Top tip
Oliver Thomas
