Manager Pep Guardiola was a touch disappointed Manchester City were unable to get a seventh goal in their rout of Al-Ain on Sunday despite the English club securing passage to the knockout stages of the Club World Cup.
German Ilkay Gundogan scored twice as City comfortably dispatched the Emiratis 6-0 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday night to draw level with Juventus on points and goal difference at the top of Group G.
City play Juventus in their final opening-round match in Orlando on Thursday to decide who tops the group and who finishes second.
Juve go into the clash with a slight edge as goals scored is the second tiebreaker after goal difference for teams level on points, with nine goals to City's eight.
In the round of 16, the top team in Group G will play the second-placed team in Group H, currently Red Bull Salzburg, while the runners-up will face the top team, presently 15-times European champions Real Madrid.
“We pushed and pushed to score another goal to try to finish first, but we missed by one goal. But yeah, we know what we need to do against the Italian team to finish as number one,” Guardiola said.
City's manager said substitute Rodri's gradual return from an ACL injury is progressing gradually.
“Step-by-step. He cannot play more than 30 minutes. He still struggles a bit in the duels, still needs to be a bit stronger, but it's normal.
“It's important he played much, much better than the previous game. We miss him a lot. Any team would miss the best player in the world.”
Gundogan's brace helped City comfortably dispatched the Emirati club.
The German midfielder found the net in the ninth and 73rd minutes while Argentine teenager Claudio Etcheverri also fired home a free kick and Erling Haaland a penalty before the break.
Substitutes Oscar Bobb and new signing Rayan Cherki sealed the emphatic victory in the last 10 minutes to draw City level on goal difference with Juventus, who beat Wydad Casablanca 4-1 earlier on Sunday.
Jude Bellingham and Arda Guler scored late in the first half to help 10-man Real Madrid to a 3-1 victory over CF Pachuca in their Group H clash played amid sweltering conditions Sunday in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Federico Valverde's sliding volley in the 70th minute sealed Xabi Alonso's first victory as Madrid manager. The result puts his side's Club World Cup campaign back on track after a dramatic 1-1 draw against Al-Hilal in Wednesday's opener, and despite Sunday's early dismissal of defender Raul Asencio.
Real can clinch a place in the last 16 with a win or draw against RB Salzburg in Philadelphia on Thursday.
Thibault Courtois made 10 saves for the victors, though he could do little about Elias Montiel's 80th-minute deflected effort that provided Pachuca a consolation.
The Mexican side were eliminated despite leading their Spanish foes 25-8 in shots overall and 11-3 in efforts on target. But as with Pachuca's 2-1 loss on to Salzburg Wednesday, it was their opponents who had more quality in their attacks.
Head referee Ramon Abatti Abel showed no hesitation in dismissing Asencio in the seventh minute for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity after the Madrid defender hauled down Salomon Rondon just beyond the penalty area.
But after absorbing pressure for most of the opening half-hour, the Spaniards raced out to a 2-0 lead in the half's final 15 minutes.
In the 35th, Gonzalo Garcia's quick flick-on freed Fran Garcia down the left. The latter then picked out the late run of Bellingham, who slid his low finish past Carlos Moreno.
In the 43rd, it was Guler providing the finishing touch from inside the area from another flowing Madrid move, this time with Gonzalo Garcia providing the final square pass after Trent Alexander-Arnold's first-touch cross.
RB Salzburg and Al Hilal played to a 0-0 draw in the other Group H match in Washington.
**Reuters-Field Level Media**