Pep Guardiola claims Manchester City have “never faced” a club like Fluminense before, comparing the Club World Cup finalists to some of Brazil’s greatest national teams.

Man City will face the Copa Libertadores winners in the showpiece final after defeating Japan’s Urawa Red Diamonds 3-0. The South Americans defeated Egypt’s Al Ahly 2-0.

Fluminense’s unique football has been defined as the polar opposite of Guardiola’s teams by Fernando Diniz. The squad has adopted an anti-positional style, allowing his players to switch positions on the field.

Diniz, who is also the interim manager of Brazil, led the team to their first Copa Libertadores trophy in November with a 1-0 win over Boca Juniors.

Guardiola told reporters ahead of Friday’s final, which will be shown live on TNT Sports, “We have to be resilient because of the way they play – they will demand a lot of effort – and try to be aware and precise with the ball.”

“We’ve never faced anything like it, never. We will have to enforce our rhythm and positional game as best we can and put on a solid performance, because we know that without a good performance and being resilient in the bad moments, winning the final will be extremely difficult.

“They play a typical Brazil style from the 70s, 80s, early 90s – until 1994, when they won the World Cup in the United States.”

City enters the game with doubts about their ability to win a fourth consecutive Premier League title, having won only one of their last six league games.

Fluminense will play despite the absence of City’s injured quartet of Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne, and Jeremy Doku.

Former Real Madrid defender Marcelo and midfielder Andre, who has been linked with moves to Arsenal and Liverpool, will be present, while German Cano – who has scored 40 goals in 59 games this calendar year – will pose a threat in attack.

“I adore it. The build-up is fantastic. “I love how they interact with one another, the respect [they have] for the ball all the time,” Guardiola continued.

“I am completely familiar with the team we will face, and I have enormous respect for the essence of Brazilian football.”

“When I was a little boy, not even a teenager, I used to listen to my father or my people [talk about] how Brazil had success with all previous generations.” I noticed it for a long time.”

Man City are seeking to become the fourth English team to win the trophy, following Manchester United (2008), Liverpool (2019), and Chelsea (2021).