Al Hilal and Manchester City are set to square off for a place in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 quarterfinals, with kickoff at 9 PM ET at Camping World Stadium. As the tournament’s round of 16 nears its conclusion, the stage is set for surprises—forcing both sides to bring their best.
The Saudi Arabian powerhouse faces its third European opponent, having already battled Real Madrid and RB Salzburg in the group stage. With Simone Inzaghi appointed just before the tournament began, Al Hilal have conceded only one goal so far. After drawing with tournament favorite Real Madrid, they’re looking to deliver yet another upset against European competition.
Manchester City, meanwhile, cruised through the group stage with a perfect record, including dominant wins over Al Ain (6-0) and Juventus (5-2). With Pep Guardiola eyeing a squad refresh ahead of next season, City appears fully locked in—one of the clear contenders for the title.
Guardiola and Inzaghi meet again
Pep Guardiola and Simone Inzaghi have met twice before, most notably in the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League final, where City edged Inter Milan 1-0. Their last encounter ended in a 0-0 draw during the Champions League group stage. Inzaghi is still searching for his first win over Guardiola, while the Spanish manager is preparing for another tightly contested battle.
“He did an incredible job in Milano with Inter. I think that for the final (vs. PSG) they arrived tired, emotionally tired after losing the league on the final day, the cup, everything… But I know how difficult it was to face him in the Champions League final. I have already seen that the team defends very well, they have quality players, they’ve got great personalities Koulibaly, Mitrovic, Joao (Cancelo), Ruben Neves, are mature and fantastic players,” he said at Sunday’s press conference.
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Projected lineups for Al Hilal and Manchester City
Al Hilal’s projected lineups (4-3-3): Yassine Bounou; Joao Cancelo, Hassan Al Tambakti, Kalidou Koulibaly, Renan Lodi; Nasser Aldawsari, Ruben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic; Malcom, Marcos Leonardo, Salem Al Dawsari.Head coach: Simone Inzaghi.
Manchester City’s projected lineups (4-3-3): Ederson; Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, Josko Gvardiol, Rayan Ait Nouri; Bernando Silva, Rodri, Tijjani Reijnders; Savinho, Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku.Head coach: Pep Guardiola.
