City clinched top spot in Group G with a dominant 5-2 triumph over Juventus, thus recording their first win over the Italian giants after 46 years, and breaking the UK derby jinx. Pep Guardiola once again rotated his team a lot, but from the beginning, the Premier League champions looked energetic. Rayan Aït-Nouri set up Jérémy Doku to score the opener, but a careless Ederson pass gave Teun Koopmeiners the equalizer. A frankly own goal by Pierre Kalulu restored City’s lead before half-time, and the second half was para traffic unidirectional.
Erling Haaland came on to make it 3-1, and Phil Foden added his after Dušan Vlahović failed to convert a chance. Savinho wrapped the performance up with a marvelous strike, while Vlahović netted a late goal for Juventus, who are now threatened with the possibility of facing Real Madrid in the last-16.
The Spanish giants led Group H with a 3-0 victory over Red Bull Salzburg. Vinícius scored and assisted while Federico Valverde and the young Gonzalo García completed the board. Jude Bellingham was again on top with a pair of assists, and Thibaut Courtois produced key saves to preserve the clean sheet. Salzburg depart the competition without scoring after a bright second-half spell effort.
Al Hilal reserved their quarterfinal ticket after beating Mexico’s Pachuca by 2-0. Salem Al-Dawsari netted a beautiful goal in the first half, and Marcos Leonardo sealed the victory with a goal in the last minute of stoppage time after failing a previous attempt. Pachuca, no longer in competition, barely bothered Al Hilal’s defence even though they pushed in the second half.
While the Saudi contingent are set to launch an exciting clash against City in Orlando, Real Madrid are set to take on Juventus in the next round of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup that is still fascinating with all its splendid quality as the event is gaining intensity.
