Man City v Wydad AC: Back new-look Blues to beat the heat

• Familiar names among debutants tipped to shine

• Heat a factor on East Coast

• Club World Cup guide - All you need to know

Man City v Wydad AC
Weds 18th June, 17:00
Live on Channel 5

City revamped

Having already spent £116m in the summer transfer window this could be a very different Manchester City to the one that concluded a disappointing campaign at Craven Cottage a little over three weeks ago.

Rayan Ait-Nouri could conceivably make his debut, the Blues' first specialist left-back of note for quite some time. Midfielder Tijjaini Reijnders is another hoping to make his bow, having joined from AC Milan. Then there's Rayan Cherki whose every touch will initially be compared to Kevin De Bruyne, as grossly unfair as that is.

Add four other new faces, recruited in January, and unquestionably this is a revamped and reimagined side, a sequel to the blockbuster team that claimed this tournament - in its previous, truncated form - at the tail-end of 2023.

Yet for all the unknowns that accompany a fresh chapter there remains familiar names to hang your hat on. Rodri will be entrusted to tick things over after nearly a year's costly absence. Erling Haaland has scored in each of his last three outings for club and country and will view an hour-plus here as a gilt-edged opportunity to mount a Golden Boot charge. The Striking Viking is 21/103.10 to open the scoring in Philadelphia.

Omar Marmoush meanwhile is, as ever, a decent shout in the shots market. Averaging 3.76 per 90 last term, it's pertinent that nine of the forward's last 12 attempts have come in the first half.

The heat is on

"It's impossible." That was Atletico midfielder Marcos Llorente's take on the searing heat in the US as his side wilted in the midday sun to PSG on Sunday. "My toes were sore. My nails were hurting."

With this potential mismatch also a 12 o'clock kick-off local time we should therefore rule out anything too comprehensive playing out, with City conserving energy via possession instead of ruthlessly creating chances.

Granted, there is a big disparity in quality between the sides, and for sure Pep Guardola's men are expected to face the minimum of resistance.

But a Bayern-style massacre feels unlikely in temperatures set to exceed 85 degrees.

Bad timing for underdogs

In 2022, Wydad were at the peak of their powers, winning the CAF Champions League as well as being crowned Moroccan champions for a record 22nd time.

That team would have given Ruben Dias and company something to think about at least.

Alas, it has all unraveled since, with a terrible season giving way to a better - if still underwhelming - campaign. In April, manager Rhulani Mokwena was sacked, replaced by Mohamed Amine Benhachem who has changed their shape to 4-2-3-1 and made the 'Red Castle' more direct. This has brought out the best in winger Mohamed Rayli who fired 11 goals last term, though interestingly for a winger, no assists.

Rayli aside, however, there is little to get excited about here, with discipline grabbing the attention over attributes.
In this regard, Jamal Harkass and Mouhamed Moufid have been the worst offenders, both booked eight times in the Botola Pro in 2024/25.

Build Ups to back

Pitting an individual against an opponent as a build up bet always adds greater interest to our television viewing but here - such is the chasm in quality - perhaps team-mate vs team-mate is the way to go.

Backing Haaland to take on more shots than Marmoush is well worth considering if the odds are favourable. The former boasts the better numbers but the Norwegian is returning to form after a recent ankle problem.

Matheus Nunes to draw more fouls than Bernardo Silva is another in-house duel that entices. Nunes has won three free-kicks per 90 in two of his last three appearances.

Now read our Club World Cup team-by-team guide