Manchester City swaggered into the knockout rounds of the FIFA Club World Cup with a 5-2 win over Juventus and face another familiar Italian foe in the Round of 16.
Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal are the opposition but their recently installed head coach is former Inter Milan boss Simone Inzaghi.
Inzaghi’s Inter pushed City agonisingly close in the 2023 UEFA Champions League final, where Rodri scored the only goal in Istanbul, while the Nerazzurri held Pep Guardiola’s side to a 0-0 draw at the Etihad Stadium during the league phase of last season’s competition.
It will be intriguing to see whether a City team attacking with more variety and fluency in this competition than they did at any point during the 2024/25 campaign can have more success against an Inzaghi defence this time around.
Al Hilal impressed during the group stage, going unbeaten as they drew with Real Madrid and secured a place in the knockout stages by beating Pachuca 2-0.
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Man City vs. Al Hilal predicted lineups, team news
Erling Haaland scored his second goal of the tournament against Juventus. He only played the second half as part of planned rotation by Guardiola, but expect him to start here.
Jeremy Doku is also on two for the tournament and has probably made himself undroppable for the time being on the left of the attack. It realistically leaves Phil Foden, Rayan Cherki, Omar Marmoush and Savinho battling for two spots.
Or perhaps one if Guardiola wants to augment Rodri and Tiijani Reijnders with an extra midfielder, as he did when club captain Bernardo Silva started the Juventus game.
Rico Lewis must serve the final match of a three-game suspension for his red card in the opening match against Wydad AC while Claudio Echeverri is sidelined with an ankle injury sustained after his marked his full City debut with a goal versus Al Ain.
Man Ciyu predicted lineup (4-2-3-1, right to left): Ederson (GK) — Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, Ait-Nouri — Rodri, Reijnders — Foden, Cherki, Doku — Haaland
Injured: Kovacic (Achilles), Echeverri
Suspended: Lewis
Man City full roster
Goalkeepers: Marcus Bettinelli, Stefan Ortega, Ederson
Defenders: Ruben Dias, John Stones, Nathan Ake, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Vitor Reis, Josko Gvardiol, Manuel Akanji, Matheus Nunes, Abdukodir Khusanov, Rico Lewis
Midfielders: Tijjani Reijnders, Nico Gonzalez, Rodri, Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva, Nico O’Reilly
Forwards: Omar Marmoush, Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku, Savinho, Rayan Cherki, Claudio Echeverri, Phil Foden, Oscar Bobb
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Al Hilal’s star striker Aleksandar Mitrovic remains sidelined with a calf injury and Inzaghi’s attacking options were further compromised against Pachuca.
Captain Salem Aldawsari scored a wonderful lob but suffered a hamstring injury that is set to keep him out for six weeks. Mohamed Kanno came on in his place and could start here.
Attacking full-back Joao Cancelo is set for a reunion with his former club.
Al Hilal predicted lineup (4-3-1-2): Bono (GK) — Cancelo, Tambakti, Koulibaly, Lodi— N. Aldawsari, Neves, Kanno — Milinkovic-Savic — Malcom, Leonardo
Injured: Mitrovic (calf), Aldawsari (hamstring)
Suspended:
Al Hilal full roster
Goalkeepers: Ahmad Aburasyin, Abdulelah Alghamdi, Mohammed Alyami, Yassine Bounou
Defenders: Ali Albulayhi, Khalifah Aldawsari, Rayan Alghamdi, Moteb Alhardbi, Saad Almuthary, Yasser Alshahrani, Hassan Altambakti, Hamad Alyami, Saleh Barnawi, Saud Harun, Joao Cancelo, Kalidou Koulibaly
Midfielders: Nasser Aldawsari, Salem Aldawsari, Khalid Alghannam, Musab Aljuwayr, Abduelelah Almalki, Mohammed Alqahtani, Abdulaziz Hadhood, Kaio, Mohamed Kanno, Renan Lodi, Malcom, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Mohammed Muhaysh, Ruben Neves
Forwards: Abdullah Alhamddan, Turki Alghumayl, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Marcos Leonardo
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Man City vs. Al Hilal score prediction
Despite his difficulties with Inzaghi’s sides in the past, Guardiola’s latest system featuring full-backs high and wide and wide forwards tucked in tore repeated holes in Juventus’ 3-5-2.
Igor Tudor’s strange team rotations also played a part. Expect Inzaghi’s Al Hilal to be more well-drilled before succumbing in due course.
Predicted score: Man City 3-1 Al Hilal
How to watch Man City vs. Al Hilal: Live stream, TV channel
Here’s how to watch this match across selected areas of the world’s major regions:
| Region | Date | Kickoff Time | TV | Streaming |
| USA | Mon, June 30 | 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT | UniMas, TBS | DAZN, Watch TBS, TUDN.com/App, Univision NOW |
| Canada | Mon, June 30 | 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT | — | DAZN |
| UK | Tue, July 1 | 2:00 a.m. BST | Channel 5 | DAZN |
| Australia | Tue, July 1 | 11:00 a.m. AEST | DAZN, Kayo Sports, Foxtel Now | |
| India | Tue, July 1 | 7:30 a.m. IST | — | DAZN |
