A firework ! Without trembling, Manchester City won their first FIFA Club World Cup by beating Fluminense 4-0 on Friday in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), with achievements from Alvarez (2nd, 87th), Nino (Csc, 27th) and Foden (72nd). During the last edition with seven clubs, Pep Guardiola’s men honored their status as favorites by never trembling and added a fifth trophy in the calendar year.
After their resounding quadruple (C1, Cup, Premier League, UEFA Super Cup), the English enrich their collection with a World Club Champion title, a first in the history of the club under the Emirati flag.
Deprived of its two offensive assets, Haaland and De Bruyne, the Skyblues never had time to doubt: Aké took advantage of a space to advance and hit Fabio’s post. The ball returned to Alvarez, who finished from close range in the first seconds of play (2nd). By establishing high pressure, the English annihilated any offensive intentions. At the half-hour mark, Foden took advantage of a big defensive error to provoke Nino’s own goal (27th).
In a game without rhythm, City made the break shortly after the hour mark on a high recovery from Alvarez. The Argentine striker sent a cross to Foden, and the troublemaker trained at the club scored the break goal by pushing the ball into the empty cages (72nd). The only downside was the injury to Rodri (75th), who came out limping. Alvarez increased the score with an unstoppable cross strike (87th).
This success also has a special taste for Pep Guardiola: the former successful coach of Barça and Bayern Munich becomes the first coach to win the competition with three different clubs, after his two coronations with the Catalan club (2009, 2011) and Bavarian (2013). It also allows his players to regain confidence after their complicated series in the championship (only one victory in the last five matches).
The Flu, which will therefore not be the first European team to break the European hegemony which has lasted since 2012, has never suggested that it could win, more than a month after winning the first Copa Libertadores – the equivalent of the Champions League in South America – in its history.
The next edition of the Club World Cup, which will take place in the United States, will be contested by 32 teams every four years and more annually as was the case until today.