Manchester City vs Al Hilal predictions: Blue Waves face City wipeout
Al Hilal face defending champions Manchester City in the last 16 of the FIFA Club World Cup in Orlando on Monday.
Pep Guardiola’s side were perfect throughout the group stage, securing top spot in Group G thanks to wins over Wydad AC, Al Ain and Juventus.
Al Hilal finished second in Group H after draws with Real Madrid and FC Salzburg were followed by a 2-0 victory over Pachuca.
The teams are playing for the right to potentially face Inter Milan or Fluminense in the quarter-finals, which could pit Al Hilal boss Simone Inzaghi against his former club.
Team news
City will be without Mateo Kovacic, who is out with an Achilles injury, while young star Claudio Echeverri is sidelined by an ankle problem.
Rico Lewis serves the second match of his suspension but the England defender could return for the quarter-final, should City make it.
Guardiola could still rotate his side by recalling Erling Haaland and Phil Foden to the starting line-up.
Rodri made his first start for City since September and came through 66 minutes against Juventus unscathed.
Al Hilal, meanwhile, have suffered a major blow with captain Salem Al-Dawsari ruled out for the rest of the tournament due to a hamstring injury.
The Blue Waves are also missing striker Aleksandar Mitrovic, but boast a strong core with top-level European experience, including Ruben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Kalidou Koulibaly, Joao Cancelo and goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.
Cancelo will face a Man City side he left in slightly acrimonious circumstances back in January 2023.
Defender Abdullah Al-Hamdan and midfielder Abdullah Al-Malki miss out through injury, but midfielder Musab Al-Juwayr is on course to win his fitness battle.
The stats
Manchester City were the only side to win all three group games, racking up 13 goals and conceding just twice.
Al Hilal have conceded only one goal in three matches since Inzaghi took charge.
But they have lost in the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League in each of the past two seasons, including a 5-4 aggregate defeat to Al Ain in 2023-24.
Guardiola’s teams (Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City) have won 10 of his 11 Club World Cup matches by more than one goal.
Prediction
Al Hilal have impressed with their defensive organisation and pragmatic approach, holding Real Madrid and Salzburg before seeing off Pachuca.
However, the loss of lively winger Al-Dawsari to injury and the continued absence of Mitrovic significantly reduces their attacking threat.
Manchester City, by contrast, have been ruthless in front of goal and boast far greater depth and quality across the pitch.
Guardiola’s record in this competition speaks for itself, and his side’s group-stage dominance suggests they are unlikely to slip up here.
Expect Al Hilal to frustrate City for periods but the Premier League side’s firepower should ultimately prove too much for the Blue Waves to handle.
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