Pep opts for strong Man City line-up in Club World Cup semi-final
Ava White
Published Apr 07, 2026
Man City got goals from Mateo Kovacic and Bernardo Silva to book their place in Friday's Club World Cup final against Copa Libertadores winners Fluminense
Michael Dominski
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Pep opts for strong Man City line-up in Club World Cup semi-final
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A strong line-up from Pep Guardiola as Manchester City begin their quest to win the Club World Cup. I hope nobody is surprised by now – this is how they win so many trophies, because he takes every game extremely seriously, and especially against teams who have been crowned the best in their whole region!
With Julian Alvarez getting an overdue rest it looks like a return to the false 9 days, presumably with Phil Foden taking that berth, although you can never be certain.
This is not quite an XI you would expect to see in the Premier League as Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes are paired together in midfield to show what they can do, and that will be useful as they both try to find their best form since arriving in the summer.
Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku did not train yesterday and Kevin De Bruyne only just returned yesterday, so none of them make the substitutes bench.
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ICYMI: Manchester City fined for surrounding ref during Tottenham match
Any excuse to run this photo again, really...
Yesterday it was announced that Manchester City have been fined £120,000 ($152,000) after their players surrounded referee Simon Hooper during their Premier League draw against Tottenham Hotspur earlier this month.
City were charged by the FA two weeks ago for “failing to ensure their players did not behave in a way which was improper”. The Premier League champions admitted they “failed to ensure their players did not behave in an improper way” during a hearing and were fined as a result.
Erling Haaland, Mateo Kovacic and Ruben Dias were among the City players that surrounded Hooper when the official failed to play advantage after the Norwegian striker was fouled in the closing minutes of the 3-3 draw with Jack Grealish through on goal.
GO FURTHER
Manchester City fined £120k for players surrounding referee Simon Hooper at end of Tottenham draw
Four changes for Man City in Club World Cup semi-final
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Pep Guardiola has opted for a very strong line-up for today's semi-final, making only four changes from Saturday's 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace in the Premier League last time out.
John Stones and Manuel Akanji replace Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol in the defence, while Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes come in for Rico Lewis and Julian Alvarez higher up the pitch.
Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne and Jeremy Doku are not available as substitutes despite travelling to Saudi Arabia as they recover from injuries.
Previous appearances in the Club World Cup
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As last season was Manchester City's first time winning the UEFA Champions League, this is their first appearance in the FIFA Club World Cup. The same is not true for Urawa Red Diamonds, who are making their third appearance in the tournament.
In the 2017 edition of the Club World Cup, Urawa Red Diamonds placed fifth after losing their opening game against the host club from the United Arab Emirates.
They fared better in the 2007 edition, taking third place. They began with a 3-1 win over Iranian side Sepahan before falling 1-0 to AC Milan in the semi-finals (pictured above). They secured the bronze medal with a win on penalties over Africa's champions from Tunisia, Etoile du Sahel.
Manchester City team news
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Man City starting line-up: Ederson, Walker, Stones, Akanji, Ake, Rodri, Kovacic, Nunes, Bernardo, Grealish, Foden
Who are Urawa Red Diamonds?
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Urawa Red Diamonds, informally referred to as Urawa Reds, are a Japanese club based in Saitama, which is part of the Greater Tokyo Area. The team play in the J1 League, the top level of the Japan Professional Football League. The "Red Diamonds" name comes from the club's former parent company Mitsubishi, whose logo consists of three red diamonds.
The club have won the top-flight division in Japan five times, most recently in 2006. The other four times came under the previous name of Mitsubishi Motors. Urawa Reds have also now won the AFC Champions League three times: 2007, 2017 and 2022.
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The tournament so far
As you can see above, teams enter this tournament at different stages.
The first round began with the host club Al Ittihad beating the Oceania champions Auckland City 3-0. The second round saw the introduction of African champions Al Ahly, who beat Al Ittihad 3-1, as well as North American champions Leon and Asian champions Urawa Red Diamonds.
Urawa's 1-0 victory gave them a spot in today's semi-final against Manchester City, who are playing their first match of the tournament. The first semi-final, which took place yesterday, saw South American champions Fluminense top Al Ahly 2-0 in their first match to book a place in Friday's final.
Urawa Reds unchanged vs Man City
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Despite losing multiple players to injury in the second half of their first game at the Club World Cup, Urawa Red Diamonds have named an unchanged starting line-up for today's match against Manchester City.
That's particularly tough luck for Dutch winger Alex Schalk, who scored the game's lone goal within minutes of coming on against Leon on Friday.
2023 Club World Cup participants
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Here are the seven teams that qualified for the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup:
- Manchester City (England), winners of the 2022-23 UEFA Champions League
- Fluminense (Brazil), winners of the 2023 Copa Libertadores
- Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan), winners of the 2022 AFC Champions League
- Al Ahly (Egypt), winners of the 2022–23 CAF Champions League
- Leon (Mexico), winners of the 2023 CONCACAF Champions League
- Auckland City (New Zealand), winners of the 2023 OFC Champions League
- Al Ittihad (Saudi Arabia), hosts by virtue of winning the 2022–23 Saudi Pro League
Urawa Reds Diamonds team news
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Urawa Reds starting line-up: Nishikawa, Sekine, Scholz, Hoibraten, Akimoto, Ito, Iwao, Okubo, Yasui, Koizumi, Martinez
The locks are flowing
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Manchester City have arrived at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah and Erling Haaland's hair is looking resplendent as usual.
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Today's venue
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Today's setting is King Abdullah Sports City, the 2023 Club World Cup's main venue. It is hosting five of the tournament's seven matches, with the other two taking place at the smaller Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Sports City.
King Abdullah Sports City
- Also known as: The Jewel
- Opened: 2014
- Capacity: 62,345
- Tenants: Al Ittihad, Al Ahli, Saudi Arabia national football team
- Notable match: Brazil beat Argentina 1-0 in an international friendly in 2018
Saudi Arabia's test drive as FIFA host
In a possible preview of the 2034 World Cup, this year's tournament is being hosted in Saudi Arabia for the first time, in the city of Jeddah.
The Middle East has been common home for this tournament, with the United Arab Emirates hosting it five times and Qatar twice during the run-up to its 2022 World Cup. Other previous hosts have been Japan (eight times), Morocco (three times) and Brazil (once).
Jeddah has become a sports hub for Saudi Arabia, hosting its F1 race, championship boxing bouts and a LIV Golf tournament.
GO FURTHER
Saudi Arabia to host 2034 World Cup – what does it mean for football?
Europe's hold on the Club World Cup
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Europe has unsurprisingly dominated this competition. The reiging UEFA Champions League winners have failed to win only one title since 2007, coming when Chelsea lost to Brazilian side Corinthians 1-0 in the 2012 final.
Taking a broader view, here's a look at how each continent has fared historically in this tournament:
- Europe: 15 titles, 3 runners-up
- South America: 4 titles, 10 runners-up, 5 third places
- Asia: 3 runners-up, 5 third places
- Africa: 2 runners-up, 3 third places
- North America: 1 runner-up, 5 third place
- Oceania: 1 third place
Previous Club World Cup champions
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Eleven teams have won the Club World Cup across its 19 completed editions, four of which have done so multiple times:
- Real Madrid: 5 times (2014, 2016-18, 2022)
- Barcelona: 3 times (2009, 2011, 2015)
- Bayern Munich: 2 times (2013, 2020)
- Corinthians: 2 times (2000, 2012)
What is the Club World Cup?
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FIFA's Club World Cup is a seven-team tournament (for now) that involves the six continental champions from the previous season as well as one host club.
In inviting last season's champions, it's similar to an event like the UEFA Super Cup, which pits the defending Champions League and Europa League winners against one another. And in inviting the champions of each continent, it's similar to the defunct FIFA Confederations Cup, which was contested by the national teams that won the Euros, the Copa America, and so on.
The tournament began in 2000, this is its 20th edition. It's set for some massive changes the next time it's held in 2025 in the United States, more on that later in our coverage.
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Early team news: Urawa Red Diamonds
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Urawa Red Diamonds' victory in their first Club World Cup match was somewhat pyrrhic, as they lost three players to injury during the second half: left-back Takahiro Akimoto, right-back Takahiro Sekine and winger Tomoaki Okubo.
Match-winner Alex Schalk replaced Okubo in that match and can be expected to do so again in today's starting line-up, while Hiroki Sakai may replace Sekine.
Early team news: Manchester City – De Bruyne training, Haaland and Doku in squad
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Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku all travelled to Saudi Arabia for the Club World Cup as they recover from injuries.
De Bruyne trained with the team yesterday but has not played since suffering a hamstring injury on the opening day of the season and undergoing surgery.
Haaland has missed Manchester City's past three games with a foot injury, while Doku has missed the past four with a muscular issue.
Last time out: Urawa Red Diamonds
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Urawa Red Diamonds faced Mexican side Leon, winners of the CONCACAF Champions League, in their first match at the Club World Cup on Friday.
Scoreless at half-time, the deadlock was broken in the 78th minute by Urawa Reds' Dutch winger Alex Schalk (centre, above), who had come on as a substitute only five minutes earlier. Leon were reduced to 10 men shortly thereafter when William Tesillo was shown a second yellow card, helping Urawa Reds see out the 1-0 win.
Urawa Reds held Leon to just one shot on target from nine attempts.
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