After defeating Urawa Red Diamonds (Japan) with a score of 3-0 in the semi-finals held in the early morning of December 20 in Saudi Arabia, Man City won the right to participate in the final, waiting to meet Fluminense in the early morning of December 23. -12 at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium.

Man City face the opportunity to win their fifth trophy in the calendar year, after winning the Premier League, FA Cup, Champions League and European Super Cup in the past eight months.

In their first appearance at the Club World Cup, Man City overcame Urawa Red Diamonds 3-0 in the semi-finals thanks to an own goal from Marius Høibråten and goals from Mateo Kovacic and Bernardo Silva.

Flying to Saudi Arabia with the team on this trip, the trio of Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku just watched their teammates play from the stands.

De Bruyne returned to training with the first team earlier this week as the 32-year-old midfielder is recovering quickly from hamstring surgery in the opening week of the Premier League season.

Meanwhile, the attacking duo Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku were also not registered in the list of 23 Man City players playing in the semi-finals.

For the same injury reason, Haaland has not played since the loss to Aston Villa and Doku has been sidelined since the 3-3 draw with Tottenham at Etihad Stadium.

De Bruyne, Haaland and Doku may play in the Premier League next week, after the Christmas break, but they certainly cannot play in the Club World Cup final on December 23.

According to Sky Sports, FIFA stipulates that only players registered to play in the semi-finals are allowed to play in the final.”

This means that the above trio will have to continue to be spectators as their teammates try their best to search for the 5th trophy in 2023.

Coach Pep Guardiola, however, is not too worried about this “loss”. The Spanish teacher seems to be used to De Bruyne’s long-term absence in attack. He still has many alternatives for Haaland and Doku.

Jack Grealish is playing very well on the left wing of Man City, and can completely make Doku struggle to compete for this position when he returns. Although Haaland’s key role is important, it is not irreplaceable as most of Man City’s forward players, including midfielders, have scored goals this season.