Ait-Nouri set for City debut as Guardiola fields fresh XI | OneFootball

Rayan Ait-Nouri is poised to make his Manchester City debut in our FIFA Club World Cup Group G clash with Al Ain.

The defender became the Blues' first summer signing when moving from fellow Premier League side Wolves at the beginning of June, but was an unused substitute in our Club World Cup opener against Wydad in Philadelphia.

Guardiola has heavily rotated from that 2-0 win, naming an entire new 11 for our showdown with Al Ain at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

Rico Lewis is the only player not to make the matchday squad due to his red card in our opening match, with Claudio Echeverri in line for a first City start.

WATCH: City out to prove ourselves during unique Club World Cup challenge, says Guardiola

Teams

CITY XI: Ortega Moreno, Akanji, Khusanov, Gvardiol, Ait-Nouri, Nico, Gundogan, Bernardo (C), Nunes, Echeverri, Haaland

Subs: Ederson, Bettinelli, Dias, Reijnders, Stones, Ake, Marmoush, Doku, Rodri, Reis, Savinho, Cherki, Foden, Bobb, O'Reilly

AL AIN XI: Eisa, Jasic, Niang, Rabia, Zabala, Park, Traore, Nader, M. Abbas, Chadli, S. Rahimi

Subs: Rui Patricio, Alhashimi, Ratnik, Cardoso, Autonne, Ben Khaleq, Jorgens, Udoh, Palacios, H. Abbas, Kaku, Awad, Sanabria, H. Rahimi, Laba

Tactics

Stefan Ortega Moreno starts in goal, shielded by a back four of Manuel Akanji, Abdukodir Khusanov, Josko Gvardiol and Rayan Ait-Nouri.

We expect Akanji to line up at right-back, with Nico then sitting in front of the defence.

That gives Ilkay Gundogan and Bernardo Silva licence to get forward and join the attack, with Matheus Nunes and Claudio Echeverri starting behind Erling Haaland, who leads the line.

Ait-Nouri's time to shine?

City fans are well aware of Rayan Ait-Nouri's qualities after five impressive seasons at Wolves.

An exciting and skilful full-back, the Algerian's four Premier League goals last season were beaten by only Josko Gvardiol, Marc Cucurella and Nikola Milenkovic among his fellow defenders, while his seven assists ranked second.

There's no question that Ait-Nouri poses a real threat going forward, but his defensive qualities could also make him an excellent fit for Guardiola's system.

City are famed for pressing high up the pitch when without the ball, and the Algerian won possession in the final third more than any other Premier League defender in 2024/25.

He's got the stats to back it up, but now our new full-back has a first opportunity to show what he's all about at his new club.

WATCH: Inside City: FIFA Club World Cup - Episode 2

Knockouts in sight

The equation is simple: if City win tonight, we'll have secured our spot in the Club World Cup knockout stages.

A draw would also likely be enough due to the Blues having a significantly better goal difference than Al Ain, should we both finish on four points in Group G.

But Guardiola's men will be focusing on the win and aiming to set up a grandstand encounter with Juventus in Orlando on Thursday at 20:00 (UK).

It's safe to say that City aren't taking Al Ain lightly though, with the boss pointing to several European sides dropping points in the early stages of the competition against so-called lesser fancied teams.

“We have a lot of respect for Al Ain and the connection with the UAE and Abu Dhabi," Guardiola said in his pre-match press conference.

"We have a huge opportunity to go to the next round and you will see how many things can happen.

"We will take it seriously and hopefully we can do a good game."

WATCH THE FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP 2025 ON DAZN

Stats and Facts

This is the first ever meeting between Manchester City and Al Ain in any competition, and the first between a side from England and the United Arab Emirates.

Pep Guardiola maintained his 100% record in the FIFA Club World Cup (W9 D0 L0, including previous formats) with Manchester City’s 2-0 win over Wydad AC. Guardiola’s teams have outscored opponents, 27-2, in those matches, keeping clean sheets in the last seven.

Players representing 13 different countries played for Al Ain against Juventus on Wednesday, more than any other team on matchday 1 of the FIFA Club World Cup.

With his goal on Wednesday against Wydad AC, Phil Foden became the first Englishman to score in multiple editions of the FIFA Club World Cup (all formats) after also scoring in the 2023 final vs. Fluminense.

Kodjo Laba won all five aerial duels he contested against Juventus, the only player to contest five or more aerial duels and win all of them on matchday 1 of the FIFA Club World Cup.