The stakes will be higher at this summer’s revamped 32-team Club World Cup.
Running through mid-June to mid-July, the competition will see teams split into eight groups of four, the top two of which will advance to a knockout phase.
Fifa have allocated a mammoth $1 billion prize pool for the tournament. The side that takes home the trophy will receive a $40million windfall, while a club winning all of their matches could see them land up to $125m.
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Some notable clubs taking part are: Real Madrid, Chelsea, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, PSG, Porto, Benfica, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, Atletico Madrid, Inter Miami, Al Hilal, Boca Juniors and River Plate.
With the increased purse, teams will be taking this year’s tournament more serious than ever. This is no glorified friendly tournament anymore. Players will have a chance to make their mark this summer.
So, let’s take a look at some fringe players that will look to seize their opportunity at the Club World Cup this summer.
Abdukodir Khusanov
- Age: 21
- Team: Manchester City
- Position: Defender
Abdukodir Khusanov joined Man City in the January transfer window and has had a somewhat tumultuous time playing under Pep Guardiola. The Uzbek defender made a mistake just minutes into his debut against Chelsea, which led to Man City conceding. However, his game has improved since, and he enjoyed a solid run of form between February and March. With John Stones’ fitness questionable — especially for the early stages of the Club World Cup — it is likely that Khusanov will earn some minutes at centre-back, and have the chance to justify his £34m price tag to the critics.
Marc Guiu
- Age: 19
- Team: Chelsea
- Position: Forward
After joining Chelsea for £5m last summer, Marc Guiu has struggled for minutes the Blues, though that is partly due to injury. A La Masia graduate, the striker holds the record for the fastest first La Liga goal scored for Barcelona. And at Chelsea, he has also made an instant impact whenever he’s been handed the opportunity to impress – which has almost exclusively been in the Uefa Conference League and Carabao Cup. The 19-year-old scored six goals in 582 minutes last season — an impressive rate of one goal every 97 minutes.
Senny Mayulu
- Age: 19
- Team: PSG
- Position: Midfielder
Senny Mayulu’s confidence will be sky-high coming into the Club World Cup, having scored PSG’s fifth goal in their Champions League final demolition of Inter Milan. At 19 years and 14 days old, the midfielder became the second-youngest goalscorer in a Champions League final. The two-footed star has only started eight games for PSG this season, but has showcased his capability to play in multiple positions in midfield.
Franco Mastantuono
- Age: 17
- Team: River Plate
- Position: Midfielder
Franco Mastantuono has enjoyed a sensational last three months with River Plate. The 17-year-old has scored four goals and four assists in 12 Argentinian top-flight games. Playing off the right wing, he is seen as one of his nation’s most exciting emerging football talents, and he has already played for the U20 national team. Mastantuono has already established himself as River’s youngest-ever goalscorer, and has a chance to continue his meteoric rise in the first-team this summer.
Jamie Gittens
- Age: 20
- Team: Borussia Dortmund
- Position: Forward
While Jamies Gittens has certainly enjoyed some good minutes this season, he has only logged eight full 90s in all competitions, and is still yet to nail down that left-wing spot for Borussia Dortmund. The Man City academy graduate, 20, suits up for England’s Under 21s. Right now, Gittens is just on the edge of breaking out into a star at Dortmund. The Club World Cup provides him with his latest opportunity to show why he deserves to be Dortmund’s starting winger.