Western Sydney coach Tony Popovic wants his players to block out a disrupted build-up, the prospect of a semi-final showdown with Real Madrid and channel the spirit that got them to the Club World Cup in Morocco.

The A-League side heads into Saturday's (Sunday morning AEDT) match against Mexican heavyweights Cruz Azul in Rabat out-of-form and having only just emerged from an internal pay dispute which led to threats of a player boycott.

Popovic, however, insists the resilient Wanderers can pull off a huge upset if they carry the belief from their historic Asian Champions League triumph over Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia last month.

"We have to remember that only five weeks ago we were crowned the champions of Asia. That is why we are here, and actually why you (the media) are here," Popovic said.

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"When you look at past winners, the coaches and teams that have been here and the celebrations they have had, you realise how big this competition is.

"We should be honoured and privileged to be here.

"The players have shown they want to do the Wanderers and Australian football proud.

"We have a lot of respect for the competition and Cruz Azul but we want to show them we deserve to be here. Which we do."

The Wanderers are winless after nine rounds of the A-League and the incentive to stage an upset at Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium could hardly be bigger.

A victory would double their tournament prizemoney to $2.4 million but also set up a meeting on Tuesday with global powerhouse Real Madrid and their stable of stars including Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale.

Popovic insists his side cannot afford to look past Cruz Azul, who themselves are coming off a poor run of form but boast a wealth of international experience.

"The last time I looked I saw 19 major trophies that they have won," he said of the six-time North American champions.

"That's a hell of history.

"It's a dream and a vision to be one game away from playing Real Madrid but our opponent looks at it the same way and our whole focus has been on this match on Saturday."

A loss would send the Wanderers into a fifth-place playoff against either New Zealand surprise packets Auckland City or African Champions ES Setif of Algeria.

The ongoing dispute over tournament prize money was resolved on Thursday after an agreement was reached to allow the players a larger share than the planned 10 per cent of $1.2 million prizemoney should they lose Saturday's match.

Popovic insists the dispute did not affect his players' focus in training.

"When we train well, we play well and this week I've already seen some great things on the training paddock," he said.

WESTERN SYDNEY WANDERERS (Aus) vs CRUZ AZUL (Mex)

FIFA Club World Cup, quarter-final, Prince Moulay Abdellah Stadium, Rabat

Saturday, December 13, 7.30pm (0630 AEDT Sunday)

Odds: Western Sydney: $6, Cruz Azul$1.12

Possible starting line-ups

Wanderers: Ante Covic (gk), Brendan Hamill, Matthew Spiranovic, Nikolai Topor-Stanley (capt), Seyi Adeleke, Iacopo La Rocca, Mateo Poljak, Mark Bridge, Nikita Rukavytsya, Romeo Castelen, Tomi Juric.

Cruz Azul: Jose Corona (gk), Fausto Pinto, Francisco Rodriguez, Julio Cesar Dominguez, Rogelio Chavez, Xavier Baez, Gerardo Torrado (capt), Marco Fabian, Mauro Formica, Joao Rojas, Mariano Pavone.