Wydad look to bow out with Al Ain win

Lloyd Kelly (R) of Juventus in action against Nordin Amrabat (L) of Wydad AC during the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 soccer match between Juventus and Wydad AC in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, 22 June 2025. EPA/WILL OLIVER

by Austin Ditlhobolo

Thursday Jun 26, 2025. 13:00

Wydad Athletic Club will go head-to-head with Al Ain FC in their final 2025 FIFA Club World Cup Group G match on Thursday.

Kick-off is at 9:00 pm CAT.

The encounter is scheduled to be played at Audi Field in the capital city and federal district of the United States of America (USA), Washington, DC.

Wydad succumbed to a 4-1 defeat to Italian football powerhouse Juventus FC in their second Group G game on June 22 as they extended their winless run across all competitions to three matches.

As a result, the Moroccan football heavyweights are placed third in the group standings and a win over Al Ain would see Wydad finish third behind Manchester City of England and Juventus.

“We want to win for our fans and for our coach,” Nordin Amrabat, Wydad midfielder, said, with the team’s head coach, Mohamed Amine Benhachem and the team’s doctor, having been involved in a traffic accident in the USA.

“We want to leave America with a good feeling, and if you don’t win, you don’t have a good feeling because then you played three games and you lost three games. So, for us as a club, we want to win the game, God willing.”

Meanwhile, Al Ain are winless in their last two matches across all competitions, having succumbed to a 6-0 defeat to Manchester City in their second Group G match on June 22.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) giants are placed fourth in the group standings and a victory over Wydad would see Al Ain bow out of the tournament in third place.

“Of course, the target is three points. Every game that we play, the target is the same. We know that we are a big club. We are the biggest club in Asia,” Vladimir Ivic, Al Ain head coach, said.

“Our target in our championship, in our two cups, and when we play the Asian Champions League, is to win every game; this game will be the same. Our target is to show the best of ourselves in the last game. And if we speak about the tournament, it’s been a very good experience. Everything has been organised perfectly.”

This will be the first-ever meeting between Wydad and Al Ain across all competitions. Referee Drew Fischer of Canada will be in charge of Thursday’s match.