A look at a set of very intriguing Club World Cup quarter-finals

Over the course of Friday and Saturday, all four of the quarter-finals in the Club World Cup will take place, and the semi-finalists soon known.

The action kicks off on Friday with the surprise tie of the round; Fluminense vs Al Hilal.

Marcos Leonardo one to watch

The former overcame Inter in their Round of 16 match, whilst the Saudi giants shocked everyone with their 4-3 extra-time win over Pep Guardiola's Manchester City - one of the pre-tournament favourites.

Al Hilal's Marcos Leonardo will be the player to watch in this game, having already scored three in the competition so far.

Manager, Simone Inzaghi, might try the old Italian trick of catenaccio against the swashbuckling Brazilians, and try to stifle their creativity.

At this stage of the competition, it's winner takes all, so by hook or by crook, Inzaghi will be using all of his years of experience to get this side through to the next stage.

Palmeiras still unbeaten at 2025 Club World Cup

Another Brazilian giant, Palmeiras, will be next up and aiming to despatch Premier League outfit, Chelsea.

The two teams have previously faced each other back in February 2022, and Chelsea emerged victorious in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup match by 2-0.

Palmeiras have yet to lose at the CWC, winning two matches and drawing the other two, whilst the Blues have won three and lost one. 

Chelsea's only loss in the competition came against Flamengo, and it could be that they face a third Brazilian side in Fluminense in the semi-finals should both teams emerge unscathed from their respective games.

The west Londoners are in good form having won eight of their last 10 matches and will be favourites against a Palmeiras side, who have scored 19 goals in their last 10 games.

Palmeiras vs Chelsea Live Win ProbabilityOpta by Stats Perform

Enzo Maresca and his squad may fancy their chances of getting to the final given the way in which the draw has opened up, and were they to do just that, they'll fancy their chances in a one-off game against anyone - though they will have to shore up a defence that has leaked eight goals of late.

European heavyweight clash is tie of the round

On the other side of the draw, tournament favourites Paris Saint-Germain face Bayern Munich in an epic all-European heavyweight clash.

Luis Enrique's side have been in scintillating form, carrying over their brilliance from the 2024/25 campaign into this competition.

A more robust and static Bayern side will certainly give the Ligue 1 outfit a run for their money physically but will have to be aware of the electric pace at which PSG break, which has become relentless in most games.

One only has to cast their minds back to the Champions League final when PSG dismantled Inter Milan and were still charging forward when 5-0 up (a UCL final record scoreline).

The Parisiens will still be wary that the Bavarians did beat them in the early stages of last season's UCL campaign, and with the likes of Harry Kane, Jamal Musiala and Michael Olise all having scored three times at the Club World Cup so far, Bayern do come into the game with an attacking trio that any team across the continent would be proud of.

With Ousmane Dembele finally having made his CWC bow in PSG's last game, they now have their not-so-secret weapon available, alongside the likes of Desire Doue, Kvicha Kvaratskhelia, Achraf Hakimi et al.

It's arguably the tie of the quarterfinals, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium is likely to be packed to the rafters as a result.

Time for Mbappe to shine or will Gonzalo get the nod?

Bringing the quarterfinals to a close are Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund in a repeat of the 2024 UCL final, won of course 2-0 by Los Blancos.

Pre-tournament, the thought of Vinicius Jr. and Kylian Mbappe running riot would've occupied many minds; however, the former has only managed one goal all tournament, and the latter was only recently cleared to play after being hospitalised.

Thank God then for Gonzalo Garcia, a record-breaking Real Castilla (Real's reserve team) striker who has been a revelation at the CWC.

He's already scored three goals one of which was the winner in a tight affair against Juventus. 

Real and Dortmund also met in the 24/25 UCL when the Bundesliga giants raced into a two-goal lead, only to be pegged back by the Spaniards who went on to record a comprehensive 5-2 victory.

Real Madrid vs Dortmund Live Win ProbabilityOpta by Stats Perform

BVB keeper, Gregor Kobel, is in no doubt about what's required to win the match.

“We want to press high and put the opponent under pressure," he told reporters after the win over Monterrey in the Round of 16. "But especially against a team like Real Madrid, who have so much pace in their ranks, we need to find a better balance - otherwise it will be dangerous.”

One of the stories of the match could've been a competitive fixture that saw Jude Bellingham up against brother Jobe, however, the latter's suspension has stopped such a headline-grabbing narrative taking flight.