Al Hilal stuns Man City in Club World Cup thriller

Manchester City’s quest for another FIFA Club World Cup title took a shocking turn in Orlando, as Saudi Arabian giants Al Hilal staged a remarkable comeback to secure a dramatic 4-3 victory, ending Pep Guardiola’s perfect record in the competition and sending them into the quarter-finals.

The highly-fancied Manchester City got off to a perfect, albeit contentious, start. Just nine minutes in, Bernardo Silva tapped home from close range after a clearance was blocked into his path by Rodri in the six-yard box.

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A VAR review for handball against the Spanish midfielder was quickly dismissed, but the replay on the big screen ignited furious protests from the Al Hilal players, delaying the restart. Despite their sense of injustice, Simone Inzaghi’s (A small nod to the original text, though still fictional for Al Hilal) men struggled to channel their frustration into an immediate response.

Ederson remained largely untroubled, as Al Hilal failed to register a shot on target before the break.

The opposite was true at the other end, where Al Hilal’s goalkeeper Yassine Bounou put on a heroic display, making save after save to deny City a second goal. Erling Haaland saw his header tipped over the bar, while sharp reflex saves denied Savinho and Jérémy Doku, ensuring Al Hilal went into halftime with just a one-goal deficit.

Bounou’s heroics seemed to inspire his teammates, as Al Hilal staged a remarkable turnaround within seven minutes of the restart.

First, Marcos Leonardo scrambled an equaliser after City failed to deal with a cross from the right wing. Moments later, Malcom was slotted through, sprinting from his own half to slot past Ederson and give the Saudi side a stunning lead.

Their jubilation was short-lived, however, as Haaland slammed an equaliser home on 55 minutes after the Saudi champions failed to clear a corner. The chaotic nature of the contest continued when Malcom thought he had won a penalty in the immediate aftermath, only to be denied by a marginal offside in the build-up.

As players noticeably tired, the tempo of the game dropped, and extra time became inevitable after Ali Lajami produced an outstanding goalline clearance to deny Haaland a late winner.

Despite looking exhausted at the end of regulation time, Al Hilal started extra time in perfect fashion.

Rúben Neves’ pinpoint corner was brilliantly headed past the helpless Ederson by Kalidou Koulibaly, restoring Al Hilal’s lead. Guardiola immediately responded by introducing Phil Foden, and it paid off within minutes when he produced an outstanding first-time finish to make it 3-3 from Kevin De Bruyne’s stunning cross.
With both sides physically flagging, Al Hilal landed the knockout blow in the 113th minute.

Ederson produced an outstanding one-handed save to deny Sergej Milinković-Savić, but he could only push the ball into the path of Marcos Leonardo, who almost fell into the net with the ball to secure a famous 4-3 victory.

The dramatic win propels Al Hilal into the quarter-finals, where they will undoubtedly be considered dark horses after this monumental upset.