Al Hilal Stuns Manchester City 4-3 in Shocking Club World Cup Upset: Complete Player Ratings
Manchester City have been eliminated from the Club World Cup by Al Hilal following an exciting 120-minute encounter. This represents one of the tournament's most shocking results. Possibly the most entertaining match of the Club World Cup to date.
From the opening moments, Man City pressed Al Hilal back into their defensive third with Jérémy Doku applying pressure along the left wing. Bernardo Silva capitalized on confusion inside the penalty area in the ninth minute to give his team the lead.
Al Hilal created some opportunities against Man City's goal during the opening period, but Ederson dealt with most threats effectively. It was a classic first-half performance from a Pep Guardiola team as they controlled the ball and patiently waited for scoring chances.
The second period brought drama as Marcos Leonardo seized upon a loose ball inside the penalty area. The Brazilian striker nodded home the leveler as Al Hilal gained momentum. Manchester City's situation deteriorated further six minutes later when Malcom broke free on a counter-attack following a corner kick. A precise pass from Joao Cancelo released Malcom, who struck the ball across his body past Ederson to the far corner for the lead.
The comeback was brief as Erling Haaland found the equalizer at the opposite end, scoring his 301st career goal. Malcom believed he had earned a spot-kick immediately after the restart, but the play was ruled offside during the buildup.
Man City almost regained the advantage in the 84th minute, but Al Hilal managed to clear the ball from the goal line in a frantic sequence. An additional 30 minutes was required to settle the contest. Four minutes into extra time, Kalidou Koulibaly put Al Hilal ahead from a corner kick.
Guardiola's most significant substitution of the match, introducing Phil Foden for second-half replacement Rodri, restored parity. A threatening delivery from summer acquisition Rayan Cherki allowed Foden to unleash a left-footed strike beyond Yassine Bounou.
However, there was another dramatic moment to come. Leonardo, who had leveled the score for Al Hilal in the second half, restored the Saudi Arabian team's lead in the 112th minute after Sergej Milinkovic-Savic directed a header into a dangerous position for the Brazilian to convert.
This proved to be the winning goal as Al Hilal eliminated Man City from the tournament. A remarkable achievement for Simone Inzaghi, who recently joined Al Hilal after leaving Inter Milan following the Champions League final.
Individual player assessments from the match are listed below.
Manchester City Player Ratings vs. Al Hilal (4-1-2-3)
*Ratings Provided by Fotmob*
Position / Player | Ratings (Out of 10) |
|---|---|
GK: Ederson | 5.6 |
RB: Matheus Nunes | 6.3 |
CB: Rúben Dias | 6.7 |
CB: Joško Gvardiol | 6.7 |
LB: Rayan Aït-Nouri | 6.3 |
DM: İlkay Gündoğan | 7.2 |
CM: Bernardo Silva | 8.3 |
CM: Tijjani Reijnders | 6.8 |
LW: Jérémy Doku | 8.4 |
ST: Erling Haaland | 7.7 |
RW: Savinho | 7.9 |
SUB: Manuel Akanji (53' for Gvardiol) | 7.9 |
SUB: Nathan Ake (53' for Nunes) | 6.5 |
SUB: Rodri (53' for Gündoğan) | 6.7 |
SUB: Omar Marmoush (91' for Haaland) | 5.7 |
SUB: Rayan Cherki (91' for Gvardiol) | 7.8 |
SUB: Phil Foden (101' for Rodri) | 7.3 |
Al Hilal Player Ratings vs. Manchester City (4-2-3-1)
*Ratings Provided by Fotmob*
Position / Player | Ratings (Out of 10) |
|---|---|
GK: Yassine Bounou | 7.9 |
RB: Joao Cancelo | 7.6 |
CB: Kalidou Koulibaly | 8.0 |
CB: Moteb Al-Harbi | 6.4 |
LB: Renan Lodi | 7.1 |
DM: Nasser Al Dawsari | 6.5 |
DM: Ruben Neves | 7.6 |
RW: Mohamed Kanno | 6.7 |
AM: Sergej Milinkovic-Savic | 7.0 |
LW: Malcom | 8.0 |
ST: Marcos Leonardo | 8.9 |
SUB: Kaio (64' for Malcom) | 6.2 |
SUB: Ali Lajami (83' for Kanno) | 7.3 |
SUB: Ali Al-Bulayhi (88' for Al-Harbi) | 6.7 |
SUB: Hamad Al Yami (88' for Cancelo) | 7.2 |
SUB: Musab Al-Juwayr (106' for Al Dawsari) | 6.2 |
SUB: Khalid Al Ghannam (116' for Leonardo) | N/A |