Man City 2026 World Cup Watch: How the Blues fared in the Round of 16 | OneFootball

The 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 32 concluded on July 7, with 16 nations advancing to the next knockout stage of the competition.

The tournament kicked off with Manchester City having one of the largest representations in terms of club football, with 18 players from the Premier League side representing 12 different nations.

The group stage ended with 17 City stars across 11 nations qualifying for the first knockout stage, followed by 11 of them across seven nations making it to the Round of 16.

The conclusion of the 2026 World Cup Round of 32 marked the departures of six Manchester City players – including Nathan Ake and Tijjani Reijnders (Netherlands), Mateo Kovacic and Josko Gvardiol (Croatia), Rayan Ait-Nouri (Algeria) and Antoine Semenyo (Ghana).

Here’s how Manchester City players have performed in the World Cup Round of 16:

France vs Paraguay

France secured a 1-0 win over Paraguay in the Round of 16 at Philadelphia Stadium on July 4.

Following an intense yet goalless first half, Les Bleus’ winning goal came with captain Kylian Mbappe successfully converting a penalty in the 70th minute after Desire Doue drew a foul committed by Paraguay’s Diego Gomez in the 18-yard box.

Manchester City midfielder Rayan Cherki came off the bench to replace Ousmane Dembele in the 84th minute. The 22-year-old has appeared in all five games so far and is yet to be named in the starting XI in his debut campaign of the competition.

Norway vs Brazil

Norway bagged a 2-1 victory against Brazil in the Round of 16 at New York New Jersey Stadium on July 5.

Brazil were awarded a penalty after Matheus Cunha drew a foul committed by Norwegian defender Kristoffer Ajer. However, Bruno Guimaraes failed to find the back of the net with the spot kick in the 14th minute and the first half concluded with no goals from either side.

Erling Haaland opened the scoring for Norway with a stunning header after being set up by Andreas Schjelderup with a cross in the 79th minute.

The Manchester City star struck again with a left-footed shot from outside the box to the bottom right corner, from another assist by Schjelderup in the 90th minute.

Brazil’s sole goal of the match came with Neymar successfully converting a penalty conceded by Leo Ostigard in the concluding minutes of the second half’s stoppage time.

Overall, Haaland has scored a total of seven goals, including three braces, in four World Cup matches. The 25-year-old is currently second, along with Mbappe, in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot race.

England vs Mexico

England secured a 3-2 win against Mexico in the Round of 16 at Mexico City Stadium on July 6.

Jude Bellingham opened the scoring for the Three Lions with a close-range header after being assisted by Bukayo Saka in the 36th minute.

The 23-year-old completed his brace by finding the back of the net just two minutes later from an assist by Harry Kane.

Mexico’s first goal of the match came with Julian Quinones’ shot following a set piece situation in the 42nd minute.

After the second half commenced with a 2-1 score, England were down to 10 men on the pitch as Jarell Quansah received a red card in the 54th minute.

The Three Lions were awarded a penalty after Anthony Gordon drew a foul committed by Raul Rangel in the box. Kane successfully converted the spot kick in the 60th minute.

The English captain then conceded a penalty, which was converted by Raul Jimenez in the 69th minute.

Manchester City’s Nico O’Reilly, Marc Guehi and Elliot Anderson were named in Thomas Tuchel’s starting XI for the match.

O’Reilly made three defensive contributions and one clearance while maintaining a pass accuracy of 93% and winning 4 (2) ground duels before being replaced by Djed Spence in the 74th minute. The 21-year-old picked up a yellow card two minutes prior to his substitution.

Anderson was on the pitch for 75 minutes, having a total of 39 touches, eight defensive contributions, three clearances and four recoveries while winning 6 (5) ground duels and 2 (2) aerial duels. He was subbed off for Dan Burn.

During his full 90 minutes on the pitch, Guehi had seven defensive contributions, five clearances, four recoveries and won 2 (2) ground duels and 3 (1) aerial duels. He also received a yellow card in the 68th minute.

England’s third-choice goalkeeper and Manchester City graduate James Trafford was named on the bench against Mexico.

Portugal vs Spain

Portugal were on the receiving end of a 1-0 loss against Spain in the Round of 16 at Dallas Stadium on July 6.

After being almost neck-to-neck in the first 90 minutes, La Roja’s winning goal came with Mikel Merino finding the back of the net in the first minute of the second half’s stoppage time from an assist by Ferran Torres with a through ball.

Manchester City’s midfield maestro Rodri was on the pitch for the entirety of the match, maintaining a pass accuracy of 93% and being involved in one key pass. The Spanish captain made a total of 106 touches while winning 4 (3) tackles and 4 (4) ground duels.

As for Portugal, City defender Ruben Dias had 55 touches, three defensive contributions, two clearances and four recoveries during his full 90 minutes on the pitch, while his clubmate Matheus Nunes was an unused substitute in the match.

Belgium vs USA

Belgium earned a 4-1 victory against USA in the Round of 16 at Seattle Stadium on July 6.

Charles De Ketelaere opened the scoring for the Red Devils just nine minutes into the clash from an assist by Nicolas Raskin, while Malik Tillman netted USA’s equaliser in the 31st minute.

However, the Stars and Stripes’ lead did not last long as Belgium took the lead with De Ketelaere’s header from Leandro Trossard‘s assist with a cross in the 33rd minute.

After scoring a brace in the first half, De Ketelaere assisted Belgium’s third goal, netted by Hans Vanaken in the 57th minute.

Romelu Lukaku found the back of the net after being set up by Vanaken in the third minute of the second half’s stoppage time.

Manchester City’s Jeremy Doku came off the bench to replace Dodi Lukebakio on the pitch in the 67th minute. The 24-year-old was involved in one key pass, won 8 (5) ground duels, and completed 3 (2) successful dribbles.

Egypt vs Argentina

Egypt suffered a 2-3 defeat against Argentina in the Round of 16 at the Atlanta Stadium on July 7.

Yasser Ibrahim opened the scoring for the Pharaohs with a header from an assist by Marwan Attia with a cross following a corner in the 15th minute.

Argentina were awarded a penalty, conceded by Haissem Hassan; however, Lionel Messi was unable to convert the spot kick in the 21st minute.

After having his goal overturned following a VAR review, Mostafa Ziko found the back of the net again from an assist by Hassan in the 67th minute.

La Albiceleste turned things around for themselves, starting with Cristian Romero‘s goal after being set up by Messi in the 79th minute. The Argentine captain then netted their equaliser with an assist from Gonzalo Montiel in the 83rd minute.

Enzo Fernandez scored Argentina’s winning goal in the second minute of the second half’s stoppage time from an assist by Lautaro Martinez with a cross following a fast break.

After being named on the bench, Manchester City striker Omar Marmoush joined the pitch, replacing Ziko in the 80th minute.

Which Man City players are in the 2026 World Cup quarter-finals?

The conclusion of the 2026 World Cup Round of 16 marks the end of the line for three Manchester City players – including Dias and Nunes (Portugal), and Marmoush (Egypt).

Cherki and Les Blues are set to face Morocco in the quarter-final at Boston Stadium on July 9.

The upcoming knockout stage of the World Cup will also see several City stars pitted against each other.

Spain will meet Belgium in their next match, where Rodri and Doku will fight for their respective nations to book a spot in the penultimate stage of the competition at Los Angeles Stadium on July 10.

Norway and England are lined up for a showdown in the upcoming round, with Manchester City teammates Haaland, O’Reilly, Guehi, Anderson and Trafford going head-to-head at Miami Stadium on July 11.

Overall, eight Manchester City stars across five nations have made it to the 2026 World Cup quarter-finals. Now, it remains to be seen which among them will advance further in the competition.