Defending Champions Manchester City Dominate Wydad 2-0 in Opening Victory: Complete Player Ratings
Manchester City secured victory over Wydad AC in their opening Club World Cup fixture, with the defending champions starting their campaign in impressive fashion.
Phil Foden found the net within the opening two minutes, capitalizing on Savinho's excellent work inside the penalty area. The Wydad keeper could only parry a shot into a dangerous position, allowing Foden to pounce. City controlled possession throughout the opening period but failed to extend their advantage. Meanwhile, Wydad remained disciplined in their approach and applied significant pressure on the English side. Just before the break, Jérémy Doku added a second goal for the Citizens from a corner kick, with Foden providing the assist.
Erling Haaland and Rodri were introduced after the interval as Manchester City continued their systematic approach to the game. Despite maintaining territorial dominance, they couldn't find a third goal, but were satisfied with securing all three points ahead of their high-profile group encounter with Juventus.
The match was marred by a late dismissal for Rico Lewis, who saw red in the 88th minute following a challenge on Samuel Obeng. Despite protests from City players, VAR upheld the referee's decision regarding the sliding tackle that saw Lewis's boot make contact with Obeng's face.
Individual player assessments from the match are listed below.
Manchester City Player Ratings vs. Wydad (4-1-4-1)
*Ratings Provided by Fotmob*
Position / Player | Ratings (Out of 10) |
|---|---|
GK: Ederson | 8.2 |
RB: Rico Lewis | 6.1 |
CB: Vitor Reis | 7.3 |
CB: Nathan Aké | 7.6 |
LB: Nico O'Reilly | 7.4 |
DM: Tijjani Reijnders | 7.6 |
RM: Savinho | 7.8 |
CM: Rayan Cherki | 7.1 |
CM: Phil Foden | 8.6 |
LM: Jérémy Doku | 7.9 |
ST: Omar Marmoush | 7.3 |
SUB: Oscar Bobb (59' for Doku) | 6.5 |
SUB: Rodri (60' for Cherki) | 6.8 |
SUB: Erling Haaland (60' for Foden) | 6.1 |
SUB: İlkay Gündoğan (68' for Marmoush) | 6.3 |
SUB: Matheus Nunes (90' for Savinho) | N/A |
Wydad Player Ratings vs. Manchester City (5-4-1)
*Ratings Provided by Fotmob*
Position / Player | Ratings (Out of 10) |
|---|---|
GK: El Mehdi Benabid | 6.0 |
RB: Mohamed Moufid | 6.6 |
CB: Abdelmounaim Boutouil | 6.1 |
CB: Guilherme Ferreira | 5.9 |
CB: Bart Meijers | 6.0 |
LB: Fahd Moufi | 5.9 |
RM: Nordin Amrabat | 5.2 |
CM: Oussama Zemraoui | 6.4 |
CM: Mehdi Moubarik | 6.4 |
LM: Thembinkosi Lorch | 7.0 |
ST: Cassius Mailula | 6.1 |
SUB: Mohamed Rayhi (46' for Mailula) | 6.1 |
SUB: Mickael Malsa (62' for Zemraoui) | 6.3 |
SUB: Samuel Obeng (62' for Amrabat) | 5.8 |
SUB: Ismail Moutaraji (75' for Meijers) | 6.4 |
SUB: Stephane Aziz Ki (84' for Lorch) | N/A |