Manchester City vs Al Hilal predictions: Blue Waves face City wipeout
AFNEWS reporter
Jun 30, 2025
Manchester City vs Al Hilal predictions: Blue Waves face City wipeout
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Al Hilal face defending champions Manchester City in the last 16 of the FIFA Club World Cup in Orlando on Monday.
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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.
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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
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City will be without Mateo Kovacic, who is out with an Achilles injury, while young star Claudio Echeverri is sidelined by an ankle problem.
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Rico Lewis serves the second match of his suspension but the England defender could return for the quarter-final, should City make it.
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Guardiola could still rotate his side by recalling Erling Haaland and Phil Foden to the starting line-up.
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Rodri made his first start for City since September and came through 66 minutes against Juventus unscathed.
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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.
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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.
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Cancelo will face a Man City side he left in slightly acrimonious circumstances back in January 2023.
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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.
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The stats
Manchester City were the only side to win all three group games, racking up 13 goals and conceding just twice.
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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.
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Guardiola's teams (Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City) have won 10 of his 11 Club World Cup matches by more than one goal.
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Prediction
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Al Hilal have impressed with their defensive organisation and pragmatic approach, holding Real Madrid and Salzburg before seeing off Pachuca.
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However, the loss of lively winger Al-Dawsari to injury and the continued absence of Mitrovic significantly reduces their attacking threat.
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Manchester City, by contrast, have been ruthless in front of goal and boast far greater depth and quality across the pitch.
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Guardiola's record in this competition speaks for itself, and his side's group-stage dominance suggests they are unlikely to slip up here.
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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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— AFNEWS reporter