By Samuel A. December 23, 2023
Manchester City added the Club World Cup to their trophy collection as Julian Alvarez and Phil Foden helped them breeze to a 4-0 final win over a Fluminense. City took just 45 seconds to open the scoring in Jeddah as Alvarez chested the ball home on the rebound after Nathan Ake had struck the post, before Foden’s cross forced an own goal from Fluminense defender Nino on 27 minutes. Foden then capped off a marvelous individual display by tapping home a cross from Alvarez, who later steered home a late finish from the edge of the box.
The night was slightly soured for City as Rodri limped off injured after a terrible tackle, but the Spaniard confirmed after the game that, despite initial fears over a serious injury, he is fine to play Everton on December 27. “I was very lucky today, to be honest. I think it was one of the worst tackles they have done on me in my career,” he said. “I was so scared because I felt my knee but fortunately it was nothing. I said to the player you cannot do these type of things. Today, I won more than a trophy. I go home safe. To be honest I felt very close to crying because I felt worried about what happened. I have pain, because it was dramatic the way it goes. But nothing affects me.”
A brilliant start to the game saw the deadlock opened in quickfire fashion as Fluminense gave the ball away from a Marcelo throw in and Ake was allowed time and space to fire at goal. His effort struck the inside of the post, leaving Alvarez to chest the rebound home in an instinctive finish. Despite the very early setback, Fluminense stuck to their bold game plan of playing out the back wherever possible, which included some very close saves on the goal line for veteran goalkeeper Fabio, pressed constantly by City’s swarming attackers.
Even though the Brazilian side held 60% possession in the first half, City still carved them open for a second. Rodri found Foden to the left of the area and the England international strode forward and crossed, only for Nino to inadvertently divert it past Fabio. Fluminense goalkeeper Fabio made a smart stop to deny Jack Grealish’s curling effort before halftime and made three more after the break. First, Foden stung his palms from the edge of the box, with the goalkeeper also equal to Bernardo Silva’s header. Guardiola then had a major scare when Rodri went down injured following a rough tackle by Fluminense substitute Alexsander, and while the Spaniard tried to carry on, he went off just after City’s third.
The goal came through Alvarez getting down the left to cross for Foden to tap home a deserved goal, but City’s thoughts were likely to be on Rodri’s injury status. In the final minutes Alvarez rifled home a fourth from the edge of the area as a fourth sealed Guardiola’s fourth Club World Cup, and his 37th trophy as a manager.
The final whistle saw ugly scenes between Grealish and veteran midfielder Felipe Melo, but then City turned that moment of anger into joy as they lifted the trophy.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said post match : “I am so proud of this club. What we have done is an outstanding achievement. To win this trophy is to be the best team in the world and our players, our coaches, our backroom staff, all of them work hard every single day to bring us this success. As a manager it is what I am most proud of; that we are always there. No matter how much we win, no matter what trophies we lift, we are there again to fight for the next one. To win the treble was truly special, but to win two more trophies and now hold these five major titles shows the unique mentality of this team, of the club and its fans. It is something no other English team has ever achieved and we will always remember this incredible time we spent together.”
