Man City faces Japan’s Urawa Reds in the Club World Cup semi-final as Pep Guardiola’s team looks to add another trophy to its collection.
With the exception of one, the Premier League team has won every trophy under the direction of their Spanish mastermind.
The Cityzens’ pursuit of trophies did not quite come to an end with their Champions League victory last summer; they are currently aiming to win the Club World Cup for the first time.
They play Urawa Reds in their semifinal match, which is a far more intriguing match than it might initially seem on paper.
Actually, the histories of the two managers are unprecedented.
In Guardiola’s first two games as Barcelona’s manager, the man in charge of the Japanese team, Maciej Skorza, faced the Spaniard.
The 2008 Champions League qualifying match between the Catalan giants and the then-champion Polish team Wisla Krakow saw them play each other.
The first game under Guardiola’s leadership went well for Barcelona, as they won 5-0 at Camp Nou.
Nevertheless, Skorza and his Wisla team won 1-0, making the rematch far from a success.
Even though the Polish team lost on aggregate, this outcome is still considered one of the biggest successes a Polish club has had recently in the European arena.
Furthermore, Barca went on a three-match winless streak after the game, seemingly giving them a brief hangover.
Urawa has advanced to this stage of the Club World Cup twice, in 2007 and this time around. This time, a 1-0 victory over Leon guaranteed them a spot in the final four.
This will be City’s first game of the competition, and some will argue that the Japanese team should have high expectations.
Between their Saturday 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace and their departure to Saudi Arabia, the tournament’s host country, City did not have much time.
The Cityzens are not exactly flying at the moment, in addition to being a little worn out.
Guardiola’s team has only won three of their previous eight games, so they are far from playing at their peak.
The English team’s defense has been a major weakness, as seen by the 16 goals they have given up in their last eight games.
Since Skorza is expected to depart at the conclusion of this tournament, Urawa’s schedule has been much less demanding, and the Polish coach will be keen to ensure that this isn’t his last game.
In light of this, we are betting on the Asian team to cause a huge surprise and win spectacularly in Jeddah.
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