In a stunning upset at the Club World Cup in Orlando on Monday, Saudi Arabia’s Al-Hilal edged past European champions Manchester City 4-3 in extra-time, setting up a highly anticipated quarterfinal clash with Brazil’s Fluminense.
The match began with Manchester City quickly asserting their dominance, as Bernardo Silva capitalized on a defensive miscue in the ninth minute to open the scoring. However, Al-Hilal remained undeterred, responding with resilience and flair in the second half.
Just seconds after the break, Marcos Leonardo ignited the Saudi comeback. The Brazilian forward nodded home after Ederson’s parry from Joao Cancelo’s cross looped into his path. Moments later, Malcom added a second, calmly slotting the ball past Ederson after being released by a brilliant long pass from Cancelo.
City responded in kind, with Erling Haaland equalizing in the 55th minute from a Bernardo Silva corner. The Norwegian striker looked poised to win it for City late in regulation, only to be denied by a heroic goal-line clearance from Ali Lajami.
With the score locked at 2-2, the match went into extra time. Al-Hilal struck first again as Kalidou Koulibaly rose to meet Ruben Neves’ corner, glancing in a header to reclaim the lead. Despite Phil Foden’s sublime first-time volley, assisted by substitute Rayan Cherki, that brought the game level at 3-3, Al-Hilal had the final word.
In the 112th minute, Leonardo sealed the victory with his second goal of the night, reacting quickest after Ederson saved a header from Sergej Milinkovic-Savic. Though off-balance, the forward steered the ball into the net, sending Al-Hilal into dreamland.
“We knew it was a difficult game against one of the best teams in the world,” said defender Kalidou Koulibaly. “We wanted to show our ideas, our talent, our power and I think that we made a very good game. Defensively we were very strong and offensively all of the opportunities we could put inside we put in, so we can be happy.”
Goalkeeper Yassine Bounou was also instrumental, producing a series of crucial saves in the first half that kept Al-Hilal within touching distance.
Despite early controversy—Al-Hilal protested a handball in the build-up to Silva’s goal—the Saudi side never lost their composure, delivering one of the most memorable results in Club World Cup history.
