Pep Guardiola and his team completed the “quintuple,” after defeating Fluminense 4-0 in the FIFA Club World Cup final on December 22.

Julian Alvarez’s opening goal at 40 seconds made it easy for Man City to kick and control the match from start to finish. Despite the absence of offensive pillars such as Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne or Jeremy Doku, the British representative still outperformed their South American opponents. The 4-0 victory at King Abdullah Sports Stadium helped Man City become the first English team to win five titles in a calendar year. Pep Guardiola and his team also extended the championship streak of European clubs at the FIFA Club World Cup to 11.

Rushing forward right after the opening kickoff, Man City soon scored from a foul pass from veteran defender Marcelo. After Nathan Ake hit the post with a long-range shot, Julian Alvarez was there in time to shoot with his chest into an empty net.

Fluminense tried to rally after conceding, but the level gap made the South American representative’s attack ineffective. What they could do was just long-range shots that did not pose a danger to Ederson’s goal.

When they couldn’t find a way to penetrate Man City’s defense, Fluminense had to concede a second goal, also from a defensive error in the 27th minute. From Phil Foden’s cross, Nino rolled to block it but accidentally let the ball go. goes into the home net.

Coach Guardiola before the match appreciated Fluminense’s rhythmic play, but the South American representative could not demonstrate that style of football against too strong an opponent. It wasn’t until the end of the first half that Fluminense made Ederson show off his talent from Jhon Arias’ header.

Impatience and helplessness made the South American team play harder in the second half, while Man City actively reduced the tempo of the match. By midway through the half, the British representative scored a third goal that also came from a broken pass from the opponent. Alvarez escaped and crossed for Foden to cushion the ball from close range to increase the score to 3-0.

Man City was only happy for two minutes, because key midfielder Rodri had to leave the field due to injury after hitting the ball with the bottom of Alexander’s shoe. Rodri then still managed to move up to the podium to receive the FIFA Club World Cup Best Player award.

Thanks to Rodri and a solid defense, Man City did not concede a single goal in the tournament. They scored seven goals through two matches, of which the last goal was scored by Alvarez – the best player in the final. Using the ball in the penalty area, the Argentine striker eliminated the opponent’s defender and then scored a diagonal shot to beat goalkeeper Fabio to seal a 4-0 victory.

Man City won the FIFA Club World Cup for the first time – a title that coach Guardiola described as possibly only coming once in a lifetime. In fact, the Spanish strategist has won this tournament four times, including twice with Barca and once with Bayern. From 2025, winning the tournament will be more difficult, with a new format of 32 participating teams.

Under Guardiola, Man City won 16 titles in seven years. In 2023 alone, they will be crowned in five arenas, including the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, European Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup.