Al-Hilal manager Simone Inzaghi compared his team’s stunning 4-3 extra-time victory against Manchester City to “climbing Mount Everest without oxygen,” as the Saudi Arabian side secured a dramatic Club World Cup quarterfinal berth in Orlando.
The Italian tactician was full of praise for his players after Marcos Leonardo’s 112th-minute winner eliminated Pep Guardiola’s Champions League holders in a seven-goal thriller. “We had to do something extraordinary because we all know Manchester City, that team,” Inzaghi told reporters. “We had to climb Mount Everest without oxygen and we made it.”
Inzaghi highlighted his squad’s tactical discipline against one of world football’s dominant forces: “All the players were exceptional in everything, in the possession phase, the non-possession phase. We were very well organized in possession and we played well from a technical point of view against a team which is really aggressive and strong in possession.”
The victory sets up a quarterfinal clash with Brazil’s Fluminense on Friday, continuing Al-Hilal’s remarkable run since their 2023 takeover by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. The Riyadh club has invested heavily in stars like Ruben Neves, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Kalidou Koulibaly, but it was their collective spirit that shone against City.
Paying tribute to his celebrated counterpart while celebrating the upset, Inzaghi added: “(Pep) Guardiola, I believe, is the best coach in the world, but tonight we did our best and I believe we deserve this result.”
The result marks Manchester City’s earliest Club World Cup exit since their 2021 debut, while boosting Saudi football’s growing global credibility following high-profile signings like Cristiano Ronaldo to the league.
