The Club World Cup means little for teams' 2025-26 prospects

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Andreas Pereira was nicknamed the "Preseason Pirlo" by supporters during his time at Manchester United. It was complimentary and mockery in equal measure, but underneath it all, the moniker applied to the Brazil international emphasized a key point about the risks of judging a player by what they do outside regular-season games.

Pereira is a good player, one who has carved out a respectable career with Fulham since leaving United in 2022 after four loan spells away from the club, but he was never able to make the grade at Old Trafford despite being compared to former Italy and AC Milan great Andrea Pirlo for his ability to repeatedly stand out on United's summer tours. When the serious action began in the Premier League, Pereira couldn't replicate his preseason performances and ended up either on the bench or on loan.

Playing well against weaker opposition, when fitness levels on both sides are as far apart as the quality, can lead to a misreading of where a player, or team, is really at. That is a lesson worth remembering as various players and teams enjoy highs and lows at the FIFA Club World Cup.

Phil Foden declared himself to be "back," after a disappointing 2024-25 season, when he scored in Manchester City's Club World Cup-opening game win against Wydad AC two weeks ago. The England midfielder ended up with three goals and one assist before Pep Guardiola's team were surprisingly eliminated by Al Hilal in the round of 16.

But is the 25-year-old really "back" on the basis of performances in a competition that is neither postseason nor preseason and should more weight be given to the quality of opposition that he and City faced during their time in the United States? After all, City's tournament involved easy wins against Wydad and United Arab Emirate side Al Ain before a 5-2 win against a heavily rotated Juventus team in their final group game.

Foden's positive tournament will at least give the player and Guardiola the hope that 2025-26 will be better than the past campaign, but the picture isn't quite as clear as that, not least because the entire City squad now has a six-week period until the start of the Premier League season when they will have to go away and rest before starting preparations for the new season.

Momentum could be lost, some players will need longer breaks than others -- captain Bernardo Silva said at the start of the Club World Cup that he had only had five days' rest between the end of the last Premier League season and start of the Club World Cup -- while others will be itching to return to action straightaway after working so hard on form and fitness in the U.S.

Reading and understanding the true level of his players after the Club World Cup will be a new challenge for Guardiola because of the unique scenario of a summer club tournament, but at this stage, it is impossible to predict whether City will benefit by making a flying start to the season or if their players will be stuck somewhere in between holiday mode and readiness for the new campaign. Chelsea face a similar problem, and Enzo Maresca's players won't have the additional two-week break that Guardiola's squad have now been granted by the defeat against Al Hilal, so their preparations for next season will be even more disrupted.

But performances in the U.S. could be misleading because of the standard of opponents, so nobody should rush to predict the outlook for any of the major clubs next season on the back of their displays in the Club World Cup. It is an easy trap to fall into.

When Louis van Gaal took charge of Manchester United in the summer of 2014, days after guiding Netherlands to the FIFA World Cup semifinals, the former Barcelona coach oversaw five wins and a draw in a preseason campaign that included games against Real Madrid, Liverpool and Inter Milan, and it led to optimism of a title challenge. United failed to win any of their first three league games and suffered a humiliating Carabao Cup exit against MK Dons before the end of August, so their preseason results and performances were misleading.

The teams in the Club World Cup are treading new ground and lessons will be learned from the experience.

Real Madrid coach Xabi Alonso said this week that being in the tournament has helped him and his squad "speed up the process" of adjusting to each other following his appointment as Carlo Ancelotti's successor, but time will tell as to how much of a true guide the competition really is in terms of preparation for the new season.

Out-of-season football can be misleading. Just ask Andreas Pereira.