Chelsea have done the unthinkable. At the culmination of a tournament that has been widely detracted for non-footballing matters, the beautiful game prevailed. They’ve beaten the planet’s best to become champions of the world, against all odds.
Paris Saint-Germain, a team whose recent success stems from a philosophy that focuses on the collective, were dismantled by an individual. Cole Palmer has endured a tough six months, but provided an overwhelming reminder of his quality to guide the Blues to immortality. Scoring two and setting up the third, “cold” became the epitaph of a tournament that has been synonymous with heat.
The Club World Cup has been shrouded in controversy and criticism since its inception. Seen by many as an unnecessary addition to an already-crammed footballing calendar, with Fifa president Gianni Infantino thrusting himself into the centre of attention in pursuit of perceived personal political gain, people have seen through Fifa’s mirage of extravagance. Just today, FifPro – the world’s main player union – branded Infantino “the man who thinks he’s god” after he snubbed the body for a “key” meeting over footballer welfare, with the union claiming that the governing body was “silencing” football’s key protagonists.
But as the walls closed in on kick-off at the MetLife Stadium, the stands packed to a degree rarely seen in the competition, Fifa made one final effort to demonstrate the Club World Cup’s perceived “success” through showmanship. Robbie Williams showed off his pipes before an ungodly amount of yellow pyro was released into the surrounding atmosphere. All that preceded a rousing rendition of “Star-Spangled Banner” and a trademark military flyover, as Donald Trump joined Infantino in the presidential box on the one-year anniversary of his attempted assassination. That explained the heavy security presence in East Rutherford, namely the secret service.
If European champions PSG emerged from today’s finale as title-winners, as many expected for a team that actually is the best in the world, football would not have been the main topic of discussion. Their victory would have merely confirmed what we already felt we knew, that this Parisian powerhouse, sculpted by Luis Enrique, is unbeatable. Chelsea strived to rewrite the script, shifting focus off politics and back onto football.
No one truly knew how Enzo Maresca’s side was going to approach this. Maybe they sit back and try and catch PSG on the counter – because surely they can’t beat the French giants at their own game? Think again.
Chelsea started with intent. They were pushing PSG back, dealing them a dose of their own medicine as they piled on the early pressure. Everyone in the ground thought the London underdogs had snatched a shock lead when Cole Palmer, latching onto a beautiful flick from Joao Pedro, bent towards the top corner and made the net ripple. His shot had gone just wide of the post and ricocheting off the support behind the goal into the net, creating the illusion of an opener.
It was a poor miss for Palmer’s standards, but he made no same mistake when opportunity arose again. Taking his time after being teed up by Malo Gusto, he slotted into the bottom-left corner from the outside of the box, firing beyond the reach on the long-limbed Gianluigi Donnarumma to give Chelsea an invaluable breakthrough on 22 minutes.
We braced ourselves for what felt like the inevitable PSG response – the one that would see the Parisians unleash a demolition on the Blues for even daring to threaten their dominance. But it didn’t come.
Instead, Chelsea made it two, just eight minutes later. Palmer with an identical finish, delightfully dummying his man after Joao Pedro dragged namesake Joao Neves away from contention with a crucial decoy run. The Brazilian, who had been proving throughout the first half that his stunning Fluminense brace was not simply down to beginner’s luck, deserved his flowers for his subtle part in doubling Chelsea’s lead. But there was no nuance to Joao Pedro’s involvement in the eventual third.
Linking up with Palmer once more as half-time drew closer, he latched onto a defence-splitting ball in behind before dinking Donnarumma, giving Chelsea what suddenly felt like an insurmountable advantage, even for this PSG team. Barring a stunning capitulation, Chelsea were on the brink of becoming world champions.
PSG’s youthful exuberance has been at the heart of their success over the past eight months, finally achieving their holy grail in winning the Champions League. They looked unfazed in Munich, putting on a clinic to record the most devastating European Cup final victory in history. But here, for the first time, the lack of experience of Enrique’s game-changers was being exposed.
Desire Doue, 20, should have given PSG the lead earlier in the first half, before Palmer had a chance to inflict his damage. Put on a plate for him by Kvhicha Kvaratskhelia’s low cross, he bewildering chose to square back towards Achraf Hakimi from a few yards out instead of tapping past Robert Sanchez for what looked a simple finish. It was a glaring miss that no doubt changed the course of the game – and history – as PSG’s reputation as a unconquerable force was chipped away.
An over-the-top American-style half-time show involving Coldplay’s Chris Martin and Doja Cat perhaps invigorated a now-desperate PSG side, who came out for the second period looking to spark a comeback. They looked certain to reduce the deficit when Ousmane Dembele, who has 35 goals to his name this season, received the ball on the edge of the six-yard box, only to be denied from close range by the regularly lamented Robert Sanchez, whose outstretched arm somehow pushed the Frenchman’s effort around the post.
The Spaniard’s intervention was pivotal in preventing what could have easily been a PSG resurgence. The Parisians continued to seek a way back into the game, but Chelsea were now playing to frustrate, to wind their opponents up. Chelsea’s master of such an art is Marc Cucurella, who after being hacked down in his own box, makes sure to stay down and milk the moment, resisting the frenzied attempts of Neves to pick him up by sandbagging the Portuguese midfielder.
To say that the 20-year-old was irritated was an understatement. He tried getting his revenge with five minutes to play, pulling the Spaniard’s increasingly iconic curly locks in an ill-advised release of frustration. But in a world of VAR, that was only going to end one way, as Neves was promptly shown red to leave PSG at a further numerical disadvantage as the final drew to its conclusion.
Any debate over player investment in the competition was quashed at full-time as ugly scenes broke out between the two sides. Their club’s untouchable status no more, Luis Enrique and Donnarumma lost their heads as a brawl broke out, Joao Pedro seemingly PSG’s common enemy as their Spanish tactician hit the Chelsea newcomer with a post-match slap. Maybe a sour end to a tournament that’s had its fair share of issues, but if nothing else, it showed the players and coaches truly do care about the Club World Cup.
And as Chelsea ran over to celebrate in front their sea of blue supporters, finally separated from fisticuffs with the French, what they had achieved felt seismic. Not solely thanks to the occasion, but because of the opponent and the nature of the victory.
Is this the pinnacle of Chelsea’s rebuild? They’ll hope not. Despite the grandiose status of “world champions” and the golden badge that will represent such a fact for the next four years, there are still bigger fish to fry. Instead, this is a huge step forward for Maresca’s Chelsea, as the Italian looks to prove his side and tactical mindset belong at the top.
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