Cuéllar shines as Al Hilal advance to semi-final

This second-round match between host Morocco's Wydad AC and Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal SFC had it all. After two red cards, a 93rd minute equaliser and extra time, it was Al Hilal who survived the penalty shootout.

An eventful second-round match between Moroccan side, Wydad, and Al Hilal saw the Saudi Arabian club progress to the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup 2022™. Al Hilal won the game on penalties (3-5) after the game finished 1-1 after extra-time, with both sides finishing with ten men. It was an intriguing game with a superb atmosphere for our Technical Study Group (TSG), who singled out Gustavo Cuéllar as the Man of the Match.

Round two: Wydad AC 1 - 1 Al Hilal SFC (Al Hilal win 5-3 on penalties)

MAN OF THE MATCH presented by Visit Saudi: Gustavo Cuéllar (Al Hilal)

According to Pascal Zuberbühler, "He is a very experienced player and was extremely involved in Al Hilal's build-up play. Despite playing centre-midfield, he frequently dropped in between his two centre-backs and his timing and technique for long passes allowed to him to execute some really incisive balls in behind Wydad's defence.

"His intelligence on the ball was so evident in a game where both teams played well and many players also," added Zuberbühler.

When our performance analysis team investigated the match data, Cuéllar emerged as the player who had most of the ball throughout the match. He was in possession for 214 seconds, a full 161 seconds more than the average in this contest, confirming the TSG's observations of his impact when in possession.

Cuéllar reliably executed a spectrum of different passes throughout the match.

Cuéllar demonstrates his passing range and importance in build-up play.

He was also ranked first for offers to receive (100) and balls received (118). In addition, he retained 96% of the balls he received (however it should be noted that 86% of these were under no pressure). Cuéllar was also the top-ranked player for complete distributions (119), which equates to a 98% success rate.

His eagerness to drop in to his team's backline to receive the ball meant Cuéllar could pick his passes unopposed.