Palmeiras will bid to end Europe’s monopoly on the Club World Cup when they face Chelsea in Abu Dhabi on Saturday night.
Sides from Europe have won the last eight editions. Coincidentally, the last time that sequence was broken was when Chelsea lost to a side from the same city as their opponents this weekend. Corinthians, city rivals of Palmeiras in Sao Paolo, beat them 1-0 in the 2012 final in Japan.
If it is difficult to ascertain quite how importantly Chelsea regard this competition, the same is not remotely true of their opponents. Palmeiras’ bus was mobbed when leaving home earlier this month, and they have been followed to the UAE by thousands of supporters.
Will the trip home be a happy one?
Lukaku needs to give more
“He fought very hard and tried very hard. He gave everything, that is why the chances all the time came to him.”
That was the view of Zsolt Low, the Chelsea assistant coach, on Romelu Lukaku’s performance in the semi-final against Al Hilal.
Which suggested one of two things. Either he was watching a different game. Or he was keen not to rock the boat during his short stint as Thomas Tuchel’s locum, with the manager absent due to Covid.
Lukaku did return to goalscoring ways against the Saudi giants. A tap in after a defensive botch gave him his second goal of 2022 – the other coming against non-league side Chesterfield.
But to suggest he “gave everything” is stretching the truth. There should be plenty left in the Belgian striker’s tank for the final. Whether he deigns to give it remains to be seen.
Kepa hoping to keep place
Edouard Mendy has been training in Abu Dhabi having arrived from Senegal national duty at the Africa Cup of Nations.
Tuchel is understood to be considering restoring his No 1 to the line-up for the final against Palmeiras, and is open to offers for Kepa Arrizabalaga to move in the summer.
If Chelsea are going to recoup much of the £71.6m ($97.2m) they paid Athletic Bilbao for his services in 2018, then matches like the semi-final will help the cause.
Arrizabalaga was outstanding on the few occasions he was called on against the champions of Asia, with one save from a drive by Mohammed Kanno particularly stunning. He would be unlucky to lose his place on the back of it.
Feeling the pressure?
Brazilians, plus most non-European supporters besides, cannot fathom why the Club World Cup appears to be so low down the pecking order for English clubs like Chelsea.
It is true the competition has always been regarded with ambivalence by English teams, dating all the way back to the time Manchester United controversially withdrew from the FA Cup to play in the first one in 2000.
And yet Low claimed the insipid showing by Chelsea in their 1-0 win over Hilal was because they care too much.
“This competition is very important for the club,” Low said. “Chelsea have never won this competition and that’s why the players feel the pressure.
“I think that is why we lacked the freedom to find the solutions and find a good rhythm and score more goals.”
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AL HILAL RATINGS: Abdullah Al Mayouf – 7. Well positioned to keep out a shot from Lukuku in the first half, and had to be at full stretch to keep out Ziyech later on. PA -
Yasir Al Shahrani – 7. Failed to deal with Havertz’s cross, which presented the opener to Lukaku, but he did not shirk the challenge at any stage. Linked up excellently with Al Dawsari at times. Getty -
Jang Hyun-soo – 6. His indecisiveness early on put his side under pressure a number of times. Settled better thereafter, and might have scored at a corner, but his header went wide. EPA -
Mohammed Al Breik – 7. Showed great poise to evade the Chelsea press early on. It should have settled his side’s nerves, if there were any. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
Ali Al Bulaihi – 7. Marking Romelu Lukaku is no easy task, but he coped admirably. Was growing terse by the end, though, and he was booked after a skirmish with Mount. PA -
Gustavo Cuellar – 6. Wasteful when Hilal had a chance on the break, as he failed to pick a pass. Booked for a necessary foul on Havertz. Had his work cut out against Kovacic, Jorginho and Kante. AP -
Moussa Marega – 6. Failed to get the ball under control twice when Hilal were in promising positions early on. Shot at Arrizabalaga when clean through. AP -
Mohammed Kanno – 8. Important at defensive set pieces, and made brave blocks from Ziyech and Mount. Hit a shot from range just over as Hilal threatened a fightback. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
Matheus Pereira – 6. His sloppiness in possession in his own half twice put Hilal under pressure. Showed some quality when he slipped Marega through for Hilal’s first clear opening, and was brighter from then on. Getty -
Salem Al Dawsari – 6. Fired a shot from the edge over the bar after a neat interchange with Al Shahrani. Shone at times, but did not see the ball as often as his side would have liked. AP -
Odion Ighalo – 4. Hilal needed more from their new signing. Too often the Nigerian striker was static, and he was lucky not to be withdrawn when Leonardo Jardim made attacking changes with 10 minutes to go. Getty -
SUBS: Andre Carrillo – N/A. Beat a hasty retreat down the tunnel at full time. Appeared frustrated not to have been given enough time to make an impact. EPA. Michael – N/A. -
CHELSEA RATINGS: Kepa Arrizabalaga – 8. Brilliant saves to keep out Marega from close range and Kanno from distance. Impressive sharpness given he was not much troubled otherwise. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
Thiago Silva – 7. Might as well have been playing in a dinner jacket. The Brazilian centre back is all class. PA -
Antonio Rudiger – 8. Former Porto forward Marega was one of the few Hilal players Chelsea had an in-depth knowledge on before the game. Rudiger had him in his pocket throughout. AP -
Andreas Christensen – 6. A quiet night until right at the end, when he somehow managed to avoid a booking for a WWE-style takedown on Ighalo. AFP -
Cesar Azpilicueta – 6. Al Dawsari and Al Sharani linked up well down Hilal’s left, and Chelsea’s captain was caught out on occasion. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
Marcos Alonso – 5. Upended Marega early on. Later had the same treatment meted out to him by Kanno. Did little of note before making way for Sarr. Chris Whiteoak / The National -
Mateo Kovacic – 7. Lucky not be censured for a clip on Ighalo’s heels which left the striker in a heap. Later booked for a foul on Al Dawsari. Good in possession, but still a surprising choice as man of the match. Getty -
Jorginho – 6. Barely needed to break sweat in the 45 minutes he was on for. Replaced by Kante at the interval. AFP -
Romelu Lukaku – 6. Maybe he was saving up his energy for the final. He really did not get through much work. Earned his money with the decisive goal, though. PA -
Hakim Ziyech – 7. Surprising he did not score given the number of shots he rained in. Twice it was down to good goalkeeping. Taken off just as he was starting a fight. Getty -
Kai Havertz – 8. Played the cross from which Lukaku eventually struck the opener. Struck a post after a fine run. The brightest of Chelsea’s attackers. PA -
SUBS: Ngolo Kante – 7. On for Jorginho at the interval, and was his usual ubiquitous self as he dominated midfield. Reuters -
Mason Mount – N/A. On for Ziyech late on, the biggest impression he made was by riling most of the Hilal backline. AFP -
Malang Sarr – N/A. Little to do after his late introduction for Alonso, but still enamoured himself to his side’s fans after successfully retrieving an apparently lost ball on the left flank. Reuters
Passionate Palmeiras
Low said the semi-final had felt like an away game, such was the din made by Al Hilal’s passionate supporters at the Mohamed Bin Zayed Stadium on Wednesday night.
The same will almost certainly be the case on Saturday, too. Thousands of supporters have made the 12,000km journey from Sao Paulo to Abu Dhabi for the tournament.
There could be as many as 15,000 wearing the Palmeiras green in the stands for the final. Which goes to show that any skepticism over the value of the Club World Cup is only one way.
It is coveted avidly by the club’s fans – so much so that they even serenade their side with a song about winning it for the first time.
Few household names
It is not unusual for leading Brazilian sides to feature players who are not exactly household names outside their own continent.
That is certainly the case of this Palmeiras team. Few of their squad have represented Brazil for a significant number of games, while their captain is from a comparative backwater of South American football.
Gustavo Gomez, a Paraguayan, is widely considered the best centre-back in Brazil. He is the personification of the diligence and discipline on which Abel Ferreira, the Portuguese manager, has based his unprecedented success with the back-to-back Copa Libertadores winners.
At the other end of the field, Chelsea’s defenders will need to be wary of Dudu, the Palmeiras attacking midfielder who is back at the club where he is regarded as a legend after a stint playing in Qatar.
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Raphael Veiga celebrates after scoring Palmeiras' first goal in their 2-0 win against Al Ahly in the Fifa Club World Cup semi-final at Al Nahyan Stadium in Abu Dhabi. All images by Chris Whiteoak / The National -
Raphael Veiga scores for Palmeiras against Al Ahly. -
Al Ahly's Mohamed Hany is chased by Rony of Palmeiras. -
Raphael Veiga celebrates after scoring for Palmeiras. -
Palmeiras fans during the game in Abu Dhabi. -
Raphael Veiga scores for Palmeiras. -
Rony of Palmeiras under pressure from Al Ahly's Yasser Ibrahim. -
Raphael Veiga celebrates scoring for Palmeiras. -
Dudu celebrates scoring Palmeiras' second goal. -
Dudu celebrates scoring Palmeiras' second goal. -
Al Ahly manager Pitso Mosimane. -
Dudu celebrates scoring Palmeiras' second goal. -
Palmeiras manager Abel Ferreira. -
Gustavo Scarpa takes a corner for Palmeiras. -
Al Ahly manager Pitso Mosimane with his Palmeiras counterpart Abel Ferreira before the game. -
Al Ahly fans before the game. -
Palmeiras fans before the game. -
Palmeiras fans before the game. -
Al Ahly fans before the game.
