Urawa Red Diamonds is going head to head with Manchester City starting on 19 Dec 2023 at 18:00 UTC at King Abdullah Sports City stadium, Jeddah city, Saudi Arabia. The match is a part of the Club World Cup.
On Tuesday night, Manchester City's inaugural Club World Cup match is set to unfold at King Abdullah Sports City, where they will face Japanese team Urawa Red Diamonds in the semi-final.
While Pep Guardiola's squad enters the tournament's final four for the first time, Urawa had to overcome Mexican side Leon in order to secure a spot in the semi-finals and set up an exciting encounter with the reigning European champions.
Even before securing their third AFC Champions League title by defeating Al-Hilal in the final, Urawa Red Diamonds had earned a place in the 2023 Club World Cup by reaching the championship match.
This ensured their presence in the tournament, as the runners-up would have been invited in lieu of Saudi Pro League champions Al-Ittihad.
Following their triumph on the continent, the Red Diamonds faced CONCACAF Champions League winners Leon in the second round of the Club World Cup, with the match taking place in front of a modest crowd of 2,500 in Jeddah. Despite the lack of atmosphere, Maciej Skorza's team emerged victorious, with Alex Schalk, formerly of Scottish Premiership side Ross County, scoring the decisive goal in the 78th minute. Urawa's journey to the semi-final was aided by Leon captain William Tesillo's dismissal for two bookable offenses.
Urawa Red Diamonds, making their third Club World Cup appearance after participating in 2007 and 2017 (where they secured third place), sought respite from domestic and continental obligations during their Saudi Arabian venture.
Their defense of the AFC Champions League title had concluded in the group stage earlier in the month, and the win over Leon marked only the Red Diamonds' third victory in 10 games across all competitions.
While Manchester City's situation is not as dire, they have faced challenges in recent Premier League matches, dropping points in five of their last six encounters, including a draw against Crystal Palace.
During that match, despite Jack Grealish and Rico Lewis giving the champions a two-goal lead, Jean-Philippe Mateta's tap-in and Michael Olise's injury-time penalty left Guardiola's team stunned.
Possible Prediction line-ups
Urawa Reds: Nishikawa; Sakai; Scholz, Hoibraten; Ogiwara; Iwao, Ito; Schalk, Yasui; Koizumi; Kante
Man City: Ortega; Lewis; Stones; Akanji, Gomez; Nunes, Kovacic; Bobb, Silva; Grealish; Alvarez
Event details
NAME: Urawa Red Diamonds - Manchester City
DATE: 19 Dec 2023
TIME: 18:00 UTC
VENUE: King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia