After easily dispatching Japan's Urawa Red Diamonds 3-0 at the semifinal stage of the competition, Manchester City will look to add further to their silverware haul this year when they face Fluminense in the 2023 Club World Cup final.
Mateo Kovacic and Bernardo Silva — plus an own goal — were the match winners on Tuesday as Pep Guardiola's side look to make the most of their break away from Premier League action, a competition where they've struggled of late compared to their usual sky high standards.
But Brazilian side Fluminense, who won the 2023 Copa Libertadores to qualify for this tournament, will prove to be no pushovers as they easily negotiated a tricky tie with Al Ahly in their own semifinal.
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They won that matchup 2-0 after which they'll be looking to cause an almighty upset and become the first Brazilian champions of this competition since Corinthians in 2012, who beat Chelsea 1-0 in the final on that occasion.
MORE: Urawa Reds vs. Man City highlights
Man City vs Fluminense prediction, odds
- Moneyline lean: Man City (-310)
- Score prediction: Man City 2-1 Fluminense
| Man City win (90 mins) |
Draw | Fluminense win (90 mins) |
Both teams to score Y / N |
Over / Under 2.5 goals |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BetMGM (USA) |
-310 | +450 | +825 | +105 / -150 | -160 / +115 |
Man City vs Fluminense match facts
- Date: Friday, December 22, 2023
- Kickoff time: 9 p.m. local (1 p.m. ET / 10 a.m. PT)
- Location: King Abdullah Sport City Stadium (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)
- Last meeting: None (First meeting)
Man City vs Fluminense best bet
- Pick: Both teams to score
- Odds: +105 (BetMGM)
Although Manchester City are heavy favourites to win this match and the 2023 Club World Cup title, they are still struggling overall defensively this season.
A clean sheet against Urawa in their 3-0 semifinal win highlights that when they're at their best, they can easily shut out teams but that's been an uncommon occurrence so far this term overall.
That shutout of the Japanese side was Pep Guardiola's team's first clean sheet in nine attempts as they continue to leak goals across all competitions. In fact, across their 27 outings this campaign, City have kept their opposition goalless on just six occasions which leaves them vulnerable again here against a Fluminense side who will enter this match feeling that they have nothing to lose and boasting plenty of attacking talent.
Man City vs Fluminense flier bet
- Pick: Phil Foden to score first
- Odds: +350 (BetMGM)
With seven goals to his name across all competitions this season, Phil Foden is proving himself to be one of Manchester City's most important attacking options.
Over the past few campaigns, the Manchester-born star has been used sparingly by Guardiola but this campaign, he seems to have found himself in the starting XI much more frequently. That should mean that he starts again in this final and at +350 to score first, we're taking a punt on his to do just that.
With Erling Haaland out through injury, Foden enters as one of City's most likely goalscorer here and with two of his seven strikes this campaign coming as match openers, he seems like strong value to do similar again in this outing.
Man City vs Fluminense live stream, TV channel
- TV Channel: —
- Streaming: FIFA+
FIFA+ will provide live streaming of every game at the 2023 Club World Cup with access also available on FIFA's YouTube channel across most of the world.
