Union phenom Cavan Sullivan got to see Manchester City, his future team, play in Philadelphia

There surely were fans from Norristown and Bridesburg in the crowd of 37,446 at Lincoln Financial Field for Wednesday’s Manchester City-Wydad game in the Club World Cup.

But only one of them knew that in a few years, he’ll be part of one of the teams involved.

Union teen phenom Cavan Sullivan, who will join Man City after the 2027 MLS season, was on hand with some of his family to watch his future team in his hometown.

City can’t talk about the deal until the 15-year-old turns 18, since he can’t move there until then because of English labor laws. But Sullivan and his family can talk about it, and it was no surprise that he wore a sky-blue T-shirt for the day. He spent part of the game in prime seats behind City’s bench and another part in a club section higher up.

“It’s certainly special to see the atmosphere come to Philadelphia,” Sullivan told The Inquirer. “I’ve never even been at Lincoln Financial Field, so for the first game to be watching my future team is pretty surreal, and I’m having a lot of fun.”

Yes, it really was his first time at the stadium, and that certainly was a reminder of how young he is. He has been at Subaru Park much more often, as Union academy product who has played seven times for the first team this year: two starts in the U.S. Open Cup and five substitute appearances in MLS contests.

» READ MORE: After a rare season without a trophy, Manchester City aims to win the Club World Cup

Watching him, and even just standing next to him, it’s clear that he still has a ways to go in his physical development. But his skill also is clear, and he showed it again this past Saturday in the play that produced the Union’s last-minute winner against Charlotte.

This day, though, wasn’t about work. It was about sitting back and enjoying a day in the sun with his mother, uncle, and cousins. (His father and brothers weren’t there because the brothers are all off playing: Quinn with the U.S. national team at the Gold Cup and Ronan and Declan with Union youth teams.)

And for a bit, that far-off moment felt closer.

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“Yeah, for sure,” Cavan said. “Obviously, I understand that there’s a long way to go until the Man City first team. I could just see the level. It’s crazy just watching them — you can see how smooth all these guys are, and fun to watch.”

Manchester City won, 2-0, with goals in the second minute from Phil Foden and the 42nd from Jérémy Doku. There also was a late red card for Rico Lewis after a rash challenge landed a boot in the face of Wydad’s Samuel Obeng.

“We conceded too many counterattacks, and they’re very good at that — they’re very fast players up front,” City defender Nathan Aké said. “So that’s one thing to look at. We have to make sure the organization is better when we have the ball. We take those things with us, but, overall, we take the three points [in the standings for the win].”

Beyond the field, the biggest winners undoubtedly were Wydad’s fans in the south stands. They had fewer numbers but easily drowned out the City fans in the rest of the stadium.

» READ MORE: Flamengo and Espérance fans lit up the city, then the Linc’s first game of the Club World Cup

They were into it starting in pregame warmups, not just with their voices but drums, cymbals, and big flags. Just before kickoff, they unfurled a huge banner that covered almost two full sections of seats, with iconography of Route 66 and the Club World Cup trophy — the proverbial American road to the big stage.

Alas, they were no match for City’s talent on the field, including big new signings Rayan Cherki and Tijjani Reijnders in their debuts. Foden capped one of the team’s trademark pretty passing sequences, and Doku met a Foden corner kick with a clean finish.

Wydad had its share of forays at the other end, including two shots on goal. But the difference in quality between the sides showed in Wydad’s inability to finish — including striker Cassius Mailula, on loan from MLS’s Toronto FC.

In the second half, the Wydad fans upped the ante with red-and-white smoke bombs and flares, their colors filling their end of the seating bowl to the brim. Whether or not the display was legal (and, unfortunately, one of the flares landed on the field), it was a memorable sight.

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“It’s a great pleasure,” defender Fahd Moufi said of the atmosphere. “They pushed us in difficult moments. I want to thank them, and I hope they’ll keep supporting us.”

Despite the nearly 3,700-mile distance from Wydad’s home in Casablanca, Morocco, Moufi wasn’t surprised by how many of his team’s fans there were. Plenty undoubtedly traveled from within the United States, but as with Tunisia’s Espérance a few days earlier, many made the long trip from North Africa.

“It’s a lot of travel for them and for us,” Moufi said. “I think there would have been more supporters if they hadn’t been blocked in Morocco — unfortunately, getting visas for some of them was difficult. But we heard them loudly on the field, and congratulations to them.”

City now heads back out of town to face the United Arab Emirates’ Al Ain on Sunday in Atlanta, then Italy’s Juventus next Thursday in Orlando. Wydad will be back at the Linc on Sunday to play Juventus (noon, DAZN), then finish its group run against Al Ain next Thursday in Washington.

» READ MORE: Philadelphia gets to meet Flamengo, a Brazilian soccer giant with a giant fan base

Fans coming on Sunday will want to be aware of the forecast high temperature of 94 degrees, the first day of a heat wave expected to last all week. The expected high during Friday’s 2 p.m. Chelsea-Flamengo game, likely to bring one of the biggest crowds in the tournament so far, is 95.

After that, three of the remaining four games will be 9 p.m. kickoffs: Chelsea vs. Tunisia’s Espérance on Tuesday, Spain’s Real Madrid vs. Austria’s Red Bull Salzburg next Thursday, and the quarterfinal on July 4. The last afternoon kickoff in town is the June 28 round of 16 game at noon.

FIFA is offering discounted tickets to Juventus-Wydad, including free tickets for families with children under age 16. The purchase link online is reachable via sinomn.com/cwctickets.