Club World Cup champions and European powerhouse Manchester City were eliminated by Al Hilal in a dramatic 4-3 extra-time victory in Orlando, marking one of the tournament’s biggest upsets.
The match ended 2-2 in regulation time on Monday, but Al Hilal secured the win in extra time thanks to a decisive goal by Marcos Leonardo, delivering a historic moment for Middle Eastern football.
The Saudi club will now face Brazil’s Fluminense in the quarterfinals, guaranteeing a non-European team in the semifinals.
Manchester City took an early lead in the ninth minute, with Bernardo Silva scoring after Rayan Ait-Nouri’s cross. Al Hilal players argued that Ait-Nouri used his arm in the build-up, but the goal stood.
Despite multiple chances to extend their lead, City was thwarted by Al Hilal’s Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou, who made several key saves, including stops against Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku.
Al Hilal equalized shortly after halftime when Marcos Leonardo headed in a rebound from a Joao Cancelo cross. Six minutes later, Cancelo’s long ball set up Malcolm, who outpaced City’s defence to give Al Hilal the lead.
City pressed for a winner, but Bounou and a goal-line clearance by Ali Lajami kept them at bay. In extra time, Al Hilal regained the lead through Kalidou Koulibaly’s header, only for Phil Foden to equalize with a superb finish. However, Marcos Leonardo struck again, bundling in a rebound to seal the victory.
Leonardo, emotional after the match, dedicated his goals to his mother, who had recently recovered from a serious illness.
“I’ve had a difficult time in the last two months. My mother spent 70 days in the ICU. Today, she’s fine, thank God. When I scored those two goals, I thought of her. She was able to watch the match.” He said.
City captain Bernardo Silva acknowledged his team’s defensive struggles
“We scored three and could’ve scored five, six. It was all about controlling when we lost the ball, controlling the transitions, don’t let them run, and they ran way too many times. With one, two passes, there was always a feeling of danger coming from them. When we allow teams to run like this, we always suffer a lot, and today was the case” He mentioned.
As Al Hilal fans celebrated, the result underscored the growing competitiveness of non-European clubs on the global stage.
