Manchester City put off their unimpressive Premier League form to sail into the FIFA Club World Cup final, following their 3-0 win over Urawa Reds on Tuesday, December 19, in the absence of Erling Haaland.
Bernardo Silva and Mateo Kovacic struck after Marius Hoibraten’s own goal opened the scoring as the Citizens set up a match with South American champions Fluminense in Friday’s final in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The Premier League defending champions have won only one of their previous six Premier League games and fallen behind Arsenal and Liverpool who sit first and second in the title race.
Manchester City were never worried as a perfect record for European sides against Asian teams at the Club World Cup was expanded to 14 matches.
Erling Haaland sat out a third successive match following a foot injury, with the Norwegian goal machine facing a race against time to be fit for the Cup final.
However, the former Borussia Dortmund striker still stimulated the biggest cheer of the night from a barely half-full King Abdullah Sports City Stadium when he gave the crowd a wave as he appeared on the big screen during the first half.
Kevin De Bruyne was also absent from the Man City team despite making his return to training on Monday, December 18, after a four-month layoff following a hamstring injury he sustained in the Man City Champions League final against Inter Milan.
Without their biggest goal threat and creative intersection, the one-time European champions lacked penetration and struggled for the first 45 minutes of play despite enjoying over 80 percent of ball possession against the Asian side.
Urawa Reds had lost six of their last 10 matches but largely kept the European champions at bay before an own goal blow opened the game up for the Citizens on the stroke of half-time.
Manchester City vs Urawa Reds in brief
Man City boss, Pep Guardiola made the shock call to abandon Julian Alvarez on the bench, leaving the English club side without a natural goal scorer in their starting lineup.
It took the current treble winner 30 minutes to even create a clear chance of goal as Matheus Nunes cut inside and fired a shot straight as Shusaku Nishikawa tipped the ball over.
Manchester City were slowly building acceleration towards the break as Phil Foden was next to check Nishikawa from outside the box.
However, the Citizens needed a slice of luck to break the deadlock in first-half stoppage time.
After the break, it was a different story, with Mateo Kovacic quickly adding Man City's second goal by running through the heart of an absent Urawa defense to latch on to Kyle Walker's pass and lift his effort past goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa.
Portugal midfielder Bernardo Silva added City's third before the hour mark, guiding an effort low into the bottom right corner after his international team-mate Nunes had a shot blocked by Nishikawa.
Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola's side are looking forward to becoming the fourth English club side to win the title after Manchester United, Liverpool, and Chelsea.
Speaking after the game, Pep Guardiola said; "The players know how important it is for the club".
"To be in this final, you have to do incredible things like win the Champions League. This may be the only time we play this in our lifetime.
He added; "We are there. We will try to win a title we don't have and finish the circle."
The Spaniard has previously won the competition twice during his spell as Barcelona boss and once during his three-year tenure at Bayern Munich.
And the odds of him adding to that collection seem short given how Man City comfortably defeated the Asian champions Urawa.
What's next for Manchester City?
Brazilian outfit Fluminense had beaten Al Ahly 2-0 in the first semi-final game on Monday, December 18, and Man City's triumph confirms the 13th meeting between a European club and a South American club in the FIFA Club World Cup since 2005.
In addition, the two teams will lock horns with each other on Friday, December 22, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Bernardo Silva and Mateo Kovacic struck after Marius Hoibraten’s own goal opened the scoring as the Citizens set up a match with South American champions Fluminense in Friday’s final in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The Premier League defending champions have won only one of their previous six Premier League games and fallen behind Arsenal and Liverpool who sit first and second in the title race.
Manchester City were never worried as a perfect record for European sides against Asian teams at the Club World Cup was expanded to 14 matches.
Erling Haaland sat out a third successive match following a foot injury, with the Norwegian goal machine facing a race against time to be fit for the Cup final.
However, the former Borussia Dortmund striker still stimulated the biggest cheer of the night from a barely half-full King Abdullah Sports City Stadium when he gave the crowd a wave as he appeared on the big screen during the first half.
Kevin De Bruyne was also absent from the Man City team despite making his return to training on Monday, December 18, after a four-month layoff following a hamstring injury he sustained in the Man City Champions League final against Inter Milan.
Without their biggest goal threat and creative intersection, the one-time European champions lacked penetration and struggled for the first 45 minutes of play despite enjoying over 80 percent of ball possession against the Asian side.
Urawa Reds had lost six of their last 10 matches but largely kept the European champions at bay before an own goal blow opened the game up for the Citizens on the stroke of half-time.
Manchester City vs Urawa Reds in brief
Man City boss, Pep Guardiola made the shock call to abandon Julian Alvarez on the bench, leaving the English club side without a natural goal scorer in their starting lineup.
It took the current treble winner 30 minutes to even create a clear chance of goal as Matheus Nunes cut inside and fired a shot straight as Shusaku Nishikawa tipped the ball over.
Manchester City were slowly building acceleration towards the break as Phil Foden was next to check Nishikawa from outside the box.
However, the Citizens needed a slice of luck to break the deadlock in first-half stoppage time.
After the break, it was a different story, with Mateo Kovacic quickly adding Man City's second goal by running through the heart of an absent Urawa defense to latch on to Kyle Walker's pass and lift his effort past goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa.
Portugal midfielder Bernardo Silva added City's third before the hour mark, guiding an effort low into the bottom right corner after his international team-mate Nunes had a shot blocked by Nishikawa.
Meanwhile, Pep Guardiola's side are looking forward to becoming the fourth English club side to win the title after Manchester United, Liverpool, and Chelsea.
Speaking after the game, Pep Guardiola said; "The players know how important it is for the club".
"To be in this final, you have to do incredible things like win the Champions League. This may be the only time we play this in our lifetime.
He added; "We are there. We will try to win a title we don't have and finish the circle."
The Spaniard has previously won the competition twice during his spell as Barcelona boss and once during his three-year tenure at Bayern Munich.
And the odds of him adding to that collection seem short given how Man City comfortably defeated the Asian champions Urawa.
What's next for Manchester City?
Brazilian outfit Fluminense had beaten Al Ahly 2-0 in the first semi-final game on Monday, December 18, and Man City's triumph confirms the 13th meeting between a European club and a South American club in the FIFA Club World Cup since 2005.
In addition, the two teams will lock horns with each other on Friday, December 22, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.