Manchester City claimed the FIFA Club World Cup title after a comfortable 4-0 victory over Brazilian side Fluminense at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Friday. Coach Pep Guardiola's team secured the title for the first time in their history, adding to their trophy cabinet that already includes last season's Premier League, UEFA Champions League, and FA Cup, as well as the UEFA Super Cup.
Julian Alvarez opened the scoring just 40 seconds into the match by using his chest to redirect a Nathan Ake shot that had rebounded off the right post into Fluminense's net. Fluminense's defender Nino then accidentally scored an own goal after a shot from Phil Foden, who added the third goal with a stunning strike in the 72nd minute. Alvarez capped off the scoring for City with a low shot two minutes from time.
Alvarez's goal against Fluminense at 41 seconds is the fastest in the history of the FIFA Club World Cup since its inception in 2000. It surpasses the previous record of 79 seconds set by Ahmad Mohamed of Al Ain against Esperance in the 2018 tournament. The third fastest goal in Club World Cup history was scored by Tardelli from Atletico Madrid in 2013 against Guangzhou Evergrande.
This marks Manchester City's first participation in the Club World Cup, following their UEFA Champions League triumph under coach Pep Guardiola.
Coach Pep Guardiola (52 years old) fielded the following starting lineup for Manchester City against the South American champions Fluminense:
1. Ederson
2. Kyle Walker
3. John Stones
4. Ruben Dias
5. Nathan Ake
6. Rodrigo
7. Lewis
8. Bernardo Silva
9. Phil Foden
10. Jack Grealish
11. Julian Alvarez.
On the other side, Fluminense's coach Fernando Diniz (49 years old) chose the following starting lineup for his team against the English side:
1. Fabio
2. Samuel Xavier
3. Nino
4. Felipe Melo
5. Marcelo
6. Andre
7. Martinelli
8. Paulo Henrique Ganso
9. Juan Arias
10. Keno
11. German Cano.
