EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Six weeks removed from their first UEFA Champions League title, Paris Saint-Germain have been the indisputable best team at the FIFA Club World Cup.
Chelsea are a more familiar sight on the international stage, and they’ve had a strong tournament themselves, but they will be the underdogs when they go toe to toe with PSG in the Club World Cup final on Sunday.
Riding high off their 5-0 Champions League final victory over Inter Milan, which completed a continental treble, PSG have torn through the Club World Cup with 16 goals scored and only one conceded. Their knockout-stage victories over Inter Miami, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid came by a combined 10-0.
“For sure, they are the top team in Europe, in the world, probably in this moment the best team in the world,” Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca said in the pre-match press conference. “But I think that every game is different, every game can be different and we’re going to try our best to do a good game.”
PSG have played a tremendous possession game during the tournament and lead all teams in turnovers forced (272). Defender Achraf Hakimi has forced a CWC-high 44, and the Parisians were quick to convert Real Madrid giveaways into three goals in the first 24 minutes of Wednesday’s semifinal.
If there’s any team that can stay patient in the face of that style of play, it may be Chelsea, led by the midfield duo of Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo. Fernandez leads all players in the Club World Cup with three assists, and he’s helped coordinate a balanced attack in which 10 different players have scored at least one goal.
“They are up there with the best midfielders in the world. I think that will be clear on Sunday,” Chelsea captain Reece James said of his teammates.
Caicedo is less than 100 percent healthy and Maresca hopes he can play Sunday, as he took part in training but not fully.
Chelsea, who won this tournament in 2021, made it to the final by defeating Benfica 4-1, Palmeiras 2-1 and Fluminense 2-0. PSG coach Luis Enrique praised Maresca and Chelsea’s playing style at his pre-match press conference.
“This is elite competition and if you think this game is just going to be a walk in the park, that’s because you don’t really know what Chelsea are about,” Enrique said. “They just won the Conference League, they are growing, they have really good players, and Mr. Maresca is doing such a great job.”
Fabian Ruiz (three), Ousmane Dembele (two), Joao Neves (two) and Hakimi (two) have guided PSG on the scoring front.
–Adam Zielonka, Field Level Media
