Club World Cup odds: Manchester City move up to become favourite after dominant group play

New York Times

5 hours ago

A divisive Club World Club has seen smaller crowds than might have been expected as a result of a heady mix of dynamic pricing and oversized stadia. Some of the star names have not been involved, and the European teams, in particular, seem exhausted after a long and gruelling campaign. The end is in sight, however, as the tournament reaches the knockout stages.
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Manchester City, perhaps unsurprisingly, are favourites to lift the trophy on Betfair. After a disappointing campaign that saw Pep Guardiola's team uncharacteristically fail to pick up a single piece of silverware, these City players will be determined to prove that was a mere blip. The manager has fielded 25 different players thus far and has been rewarded with goals from all over the pitch.
City have waltzed through the competition thus far and did not even concede a goal until an impressive 5-2 victory over Juventus. Al-Hilal are up next and should pose no great threat to a team that, prior to the season just gone, won four successive Premier League titles. They have missed Rodri, who played 125 minutes in group play, but it's not hard to see why the bookmakers still believe Guardiola's side is the one to beat.
Paris Saint-Germain are second favourites to go all the way after an extraordinary season that saw them dominate the Champions League like few teams have managed in the modern era. They began the CWC with an excellent 4-0 trouncing of Atletico Madrid before a surprising 1-0 loss to Botafogo. The French giants were back on track with a 2-0 victory over Seattle Sounders that sets up a round of 16 clash against Inter Miami and a certain Lionel Messi.
Messi will come up against his former employers retaining his remarkable record of having never been eliminated at the group stage of a tournament for club or country in 21 years and 33 separate group stages. PSG will surely have too much for Miami as they look to become club champions of the world as well as Europe.
Real Madrid are third favourites after a disappointing season by their own impeccably high standards. Carlo Ancelotti's side were runners up in the league and Copa del Rey, losing out to arch rivals Barcelona in both competitions in a turn of events that would have stung players and fans alike. Their clash with Juventus in the last 16 could be an epic with these two European heavyweights looking to bounce back from disappointing seasons.
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The bookmakers are of the belief that Bayern Munich are the fourth most likely team to emerge triumphant in the United States. They started out with a stunning 10-0 win over Auckland City before an edgier 2-1 defeat of Boca Juniors followed by a shock defeat at the hands of Benfica. By way of mitigation, though, Vincent Kompany did rest several key men for the Benfica match and one senses it would have been a different story with a full-strength team on the pitch.
Harry Kane finally got over the line and won a trophy when Bayern secured the Bundesliga, and he will be eager to double his haul. He was not involved against Benfica, but the England man will surely play a major role in the knockout stages. It seems likely Munich, like the other big hitters in the competition, will be taking no chances with team selections going forward.
Chelsea are not short odds to go the distance, but the bookmakers are not ruling them out of contention entirely. It was a strange first season for Enzo Maresca at Stamford Bridge, but they were ultimately good enough to qualify for the Champions League and win the Europa Conference League. The manager has fielded a plethora of different players across the CWC so far, one advantage of such a massive squad.
Maresca's side won twice in the group stage but suffered a defeat when they came up against Brazilian giants Flamengo. Benfica are up next, and the Blues will have to do without the services of the suspended Nicolas Jackson.
Finally, Inter Milan are not dissimilar odds to Chelsea when it comes to securing the crown. This seems pretty unfair on a side that has reached two Champions League finals in the last three seasons, thus showing know-how when it comes to knock-out competition when faced with the world's very best teams. They started this tournament slowly (with a 1-1 draw against Monterrey), but so often that seems to presage a team going all the way.
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The Italian giants have been without several big names, including defenders Yann Bisseck and Benjamin Pavard, while new manager Cristian Chivu experiments with his options. Marcus Thuram picked up an injury in that draw with Monterrey, so it will be an unusual team that takes on Fluminense at the start of the week.
While European clubs take up the top six spots in the odds, clubs from outside Europe occupy the bottom four spots. The longest odds belong to Messi's Inter Miami.
Betting/odds links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.
(Photo of Savinho and Phil Foden: Chandan Khanna / AFP via Getty Images)