Manchester City outclass Urawa Red Diamonds to reach Club World Cup final

JEDDAH – Manchester City will have to cope without Erling Haaland as they aim to lift the Club World Cup for the first time in the final against Brazilian side Fluminense on Dec 22.

The European champions shrugged off their sluggish English Premier League form to cruise past Japan’s Urawa Reds 3-0 in their semi-final in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Dec 19.

Haaland watched on from the stands due to a foot injury as Mateo Kovacic and Bernardo Silva struck after an own goal by Marius Hoibraten had helped them break the deadlock.

The Norwegian striker still drew the biggest cheer of the night from a barely half-full King Abdullah Sports City Stadium when he offered the crowd a wave as he appeared on the big screens during the first half.

But City boss Pep Guardiola confirmed his top scorer will miss the final and does not know when the 23-year-old will be fit to feature again, having already missed four matches.

City have won only one of their last six Premier League matches to fall behind Arsenal, Liverpool and Aston Villa in the title race.

“Erling still cannot train,” said Guardiola after Haaland was left out of the City squad.

Tournament rules state that the 23 players selected in the semi-final are the only players allowed to feature in the final.

Kevin de Bruyne will also miss the final despite returning to training on Dec 18 from a four-month layoff due to a hamstring injury.

Despite missing their biggest goal threat and creative hub, City were never troubled as an unblemished record for European sides against Asian teams at the Club World Cup was extended to 14 games.

“Happy to get to the final against Fluminense. It’s the last step to win the title, the only title the club doesn’t have, so we go for it,” added Guardiola.

Asian champions Urawa had lost six of their previous 10 games but largely kept their opponents at bay before a self-inflicted blow opened the game up for City on the stroke of half-time.

Matheus Nunes fired a low cross into the box that Hoibraten turned into his own net under little pressure.

As Urawa tired from chasing the ball in the sweltering Saudi heat, City were then able to cut loose in the second half.

Kovacic drilled in his first City goal after racing onto Kyle Walker’s through-ball that carved the Japanese defence apart.

A third goal for Guardiola’s men did not take long to arrive as Hoibraten’s bad luck continued when Silva’s shot deflected in off the Norwegian defender.

A hugely one-sided contest did little to whet the appetite for many more matches between Europe’s elite clubs and the rest of the world as the financial gulf between the two continues to grow.

“A lot of our players now know what is the gap between a Premier League team and our team,” said Urawa coach Maciej Skorza.

“We expected possession of the ball will be huge for Manchester City, but we had our plan to counter-attack. Maybe this match showed also quite a big difference in physical aspect between these two teams.”

European teams are now unbeaten in 21 Club World Cup matches for over a decade, with Chelsea being the last side to suffer a defeat when they lost 1-0 to Brazilian club Corinthians in the 2012 final.

City midfielder Rodri, meanwhile, said that the Club World Cup has given City a break from their recent poor form in the Premier League and the players are determined to put in the hard work and turn results around.

“We have to give our best to try to win everything because it will be history. It would be an amazing run if we end with five titles,” he said, referring to the treble and also their Uefa Super Cup win.

“(The last few games) left a very bad feeling in the changing room, so I think it was good for us to stop a little bit and then come here to the Club World Cup.

“It’s a time when you have to be quiet, work as hard as you can and results will come out.” AFP, REUTERS