Chelsea clinched a hard-fought victory to win the Club World Cup for the first time in their history.
Chelsea defeated Palmeiras 2-1 in the Club World Cup final on Saturday. The Blues are now the third English club, alongside Liverpool and Manchester United, to have ever won the tournament.
Havertz with another tournament winner!
Chelsea pushed hard to get the opener as soon as they found their rhythm in the first half. However, they soon realized they were playing against a highly organized team that like to dominate the midfield.
The absence of Mason Mount hurt Chelsea a lot during the first half. However, when Christian Pulisic came in, Chelsea managed to find more spaces upfront. Following a brilliant run and cross from Callum Hudson-Odoi, Romelu Lukaku broke the deadlock with a powerful header five in the 55th minute.
However, Chelsea was not able to hold on to their lead for too long. Only nine minutes after Lukaku’s goal, a handball from Thiago Silva provided Raphael Veiga to score the equalizer from the penalty spot. The Brazilian star took his chance as he cancelled out Lukaku’s goal.
Chelsea was not able to score the winner by the end of the 90th minute. Palmeiras held Chelsea at bay for most of the extra time too. However, another handball resulted in another penalty, which decided the game.
Similar to the Champions League final, Havertz scored another vital goal for the Blues by converting the penalty in the 117th minute.
Palmeiras pushed to get their second equalizer in the final three minutes, but it only resulted in a last-minute red card for their defender Luan Garcia.
Chelsea won their first trophy of the year as they won the club’s first-ever Club World Cup trophy. Thomas Tuchel’s side will now return to England to prepare for their match against Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Player Ratings
Chelsea: Mendy (6), Christensen (6), T. Silva (7), Rudiger (7); Azpilicueta (7), Kante (7), Kovacic (6), Hudson-Odoi (7); Mount (6), Havertz (8), Lukaku (7).
Bench: Sarr (6), Niguez (6), Ziyech (7), Werner (6), Pulisic (7).
Palmeiras: Weverton (6); Rocha (7), Gómez (6), Luan (5), Piquerez (6); Danilo (5), Zé Rafael (5); Dudu (6), Veiga (7), Scarpa (6); Rony (7).
Bench: Siqueira (6), Wesley (7), Atuesta (5), Navarro (6), Deyverson (6).
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