Club World Cup Final 2025 - Chelsea 3-0 PSG

[Bluepower777 31]

Reaching the final is already an achievement and some nice money too. Didn't Maresca say he plans to play Reece midfield if he goes for a 3 man midfield. Would of course be a huge mistake, Reece is needed to plug that right back spot. Opposing teams seem to always be attacking down there. Anyway his probably going to go for a 3 man attacking midfield which means Caceido and Fernandez will be the 2 centre midfielders. Don't think thats sufficient to counter their midfield.

[OhForAGreavsie 6,058]

33 minutes ago, Bluepower777 said:

Reaching the final is already an achievement and some nice money too. Didn't Maresca say he plans to play Reece midfield if he goes for a 3 man midfield. Would of course be a huge mistake, Reece is needed to plug that right back spot. Opposing teams seem to always be attacking down there. Anyway his probably going to go for a 3 man attacking midfield which means Caceido and Fernandez will be the 2 centre midfielders. Don't think thats sufficient to counter their midfield.

Fitness permitting: -

Sanchez, James, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella, Lavia, Caicedo, Fernandez, Palmer, Pedro, Neto.

[milka 3,390]

On 11/07/2025 at 12:47, NikkiCFC said:

Hopefully. For years waiting for that positive comment from Bulgaria. 

Yes, we say when something is garbage, we are not as politically correct as the Serbs

[ZAPHOD2319 4,801]

7 hours ago, OhForAGreavsie said:

Fitness permitting: -

Sanchez, James, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella, Lavia, Caicedo, Fernandez, Palmer, Pedro, Neto.

Lavia is out. We need his profile. I wonder if they put in Essugo or Santos?

[OhForAGreavsie 6,058]

1 hour ago, ZAPHOD2319 said:

Lavia is out.

That's a blow.

[ahmedou 188]

🙏

[Vesper 30,095]

13 hours ago, OhForAGreavsie said:

I'm not convinced it's correct to say that this will be the second edition. What has been known as the club World Cup in more recent seasons was originally called the Intercontinental Cup. Right from the days when it was a straight match up between the champions of Europe and South America.

it's the 2nd edition of the new FIFA Intercontinental Cup

the 1st edition was in 2024, this 2nd edition is in 2025

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FIFA_Intercontinental_Cup

The FIFA Intercontinental Cup is an international men's association football competition organised by FIFA, the sport's global governing body. The first edition took place in 2024. 

 

The old Intercontinental Cup was organized jointly by UEFA and CONMEBOL from 1960–2004. FIFA was not involved, although since 2017, past Intercontinental Cup winners have been recognised by FIFA as club world champions.

[LAM09 7,043]

I feel we have a real chance if Caicedo is fit to start, and we are smart about our approach. If we try to take them head on, we'll follow those before us this calendar year.

[Vesper 30,095]

1 hour ago, LAM09 said:

I feel we have a real chance if Caicedo is fit to start, and we are smart about our approach. If we try to take them head on, we'll follow those before us this calendar year.

I so wish Lavia was fit to go, but alas, the glass man has broken again

[Vesper 30,095]

Rotation: The key word of Chelsea’s long summer at the Club World Cup

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6484577/2025/07/11/Chelsea-rotation-tactics-club-world-cup/

Chelsea are no strangers to rotating their squad.

Last season’s Europa Conference League victory alone was built on a starting line-up that was unrecognisable from the weekend’s Premier League fixture, with Enzo Maresca making wholesale changes from one game to another.

Things have not been quite so extreme en route to the Club World Cup final, but there is little doubt that Maresca has been resourceful in calling upon as many players as possible within an ever-growing squad in the United States.

Across the past four weeks, 27 Chelsea players have taken to the field, which is more than any other side competing in the tournament. Across their six games, Chelsea are averaging over four changes to the starting XI per game.

You might rightly point out that they have also simply played more games than many of their rivals, but fellow semi-finalists Fluminense (23), Real Madrid (22) and Paris Saint-Germain (19) do not get near Maresca’s tally.

That tally stood at 36 players for Chelsea’s Conference League exploits, also the highest among all teams in the competition. It is no secret that Chelsea have got an inflated squad to choose from, but Maresca has managed to rotate his line-up while still maintaining an element of consistency in the performances in getting to Sunday’s final in New York.

“When you play every three days in this competition, you need a big squad,” Maresca said after Chelsea’s semi-final victory over Fluminense.

“But also they have to be ready, and they showed that. They are good players, but we can count on them with how professional they are and this (having a big squad) is something that we need for the future.”

 

(Alex Grimm/Getty Images)

But looking to the future is where things start to get a little muddy.

With an upcoming Champions League campaign on the horizon, Chelsea will need to register new players — including Liam Delap, Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens — on top of their existing squad.

However, in line with UEFA’s squad registration rules, each team can only register up to 25 players on their “A list”. Notwithstanding the financial implications that UEFA have already imposed on the club, that means that Chelsea will either need to sell players this summer or accept that there will be some high-profile omissions from their European squad for the upcoming campaign with an already-stacked squad.

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---

Returning to on-pitch matters, it is not just Maresca’s flexibility in tweaking personnel, but the rotations of players’ roles that have been equally impressive this summer. In truth, this was a theme of Chelsea last season, but to see it played out within such a condensed summer tournament has been notable by its presence.

As The Athletic analysed last week, Maresca has used this summer as an opportunity to shape shift and experiment with some new tactical ideas in a competitive environment ahead of the new campaign — including a 4-2-2-2 shape against Flamengo.

“In the last two days, we tried something completely different,” Maresca said after their defeat to the Brazilian side. “We played in a different structure today to prepare for next season and have more options.”

While such tweaks are also designed to adapt to the qualities of the opponent, mapping Chelsea’s pass networks across each game underpins the differences in shape and personnel excellently.

Marc Cucurella or Malo Gusto pushing high or tucking in? Pedro Neto starting on the left or right flank? Christopher Nkunku staying wide or… helping to support Chelsea’s build-up (as he did against Fluminense)?

Some of the tweaks to personnel have been born out of necessity, through suspensions (Nicolas Jackson, Moises Caicedo, Levi Colwill and Liam Delap) or injury niggles (e.g. Romeo Lavia and Reece James).

In the case of James’ last-minute absence against Palmeiras after pulling up in the warm-up, that made way for 21-year-old Andrey Santos to make his first competitive start for Chelsea at the base of midfield — giving a good account of himself with neat and tidy passing and a few full-blooded challenges.

 

(Luke Hales/Getty Images)

Similarly, Delap’s suspension gave Maresca the opportunity to thrust new signing Joao Pedro in from the start, with the Brazilian international repaying the faith emphatically by scoring a pair of stunning goals to send Chelsea through to the final.

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However, plenty of other rotations have been more experimental from Chelsea’s head coach. One notable tweak was Cole Palmer’s starting position on the left side of attack in Chelsea’s last-16 victory over Benfica. Another was James’ inside role as a starting midfielder against Flamengo, which was notably less successful.

Some tweaks have been a little more subtle, but there were plenty on the bingo card in Chelsea’s semi-final clash with Fluminense on Tuesday.

Having started on the left flank, Pedro Neto was able to play on the right side with just as much ease in the second half, as he has repeatedly shown across the season. Noni Madueke is adept at doing the same, arriving on the right wing (with Nkunku himself switching from right to left) before finishing the game on the left during his cameo — as shown below.

The same was true of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall in the closing minutes. Having come onto the pitch as a right-winger, the 26-year-old started wide with Palmer inside, but by the end of the game (partly due to Caicedo receiving treatment off the pitch) it was Dewsbury-Hall playing inside as Palmer pushed into a wide area.

The sweltering conditions will have also been a key factor in Maresca’s decision-making during Chelsea’s time in the United States, often looking to the bench when possible to keep his side fresh until the final whistle.

That is before digging into the widely discussed fixture calendar that European clubs have faced compared with their South American counterparts this summer. For Maresca, rotations have been integral to managing the intensity and load on players after a full season.

“Fluminense have one month off (December 8 to January 12) — our players last had one month holiday in June 2024,” Maresca said on Tuesday.

“There is a different energy between Brazilian teams and European teams, it is because they had a one-month holiday six months ago. Our players last had a one-month holiday 12-13 months ago. It is a huge difference — so the weather conditions plus the difference of calendar make the levels in the team (across continents) very close.”

In the next few months, that elephant in the room of exactly how Maresca will juggle — or rather, register — each member of Chelsea’s squad for their next international games will linger.

For now, whatever happens on Sunday in Chelsea’s final against Paris Saint-Germain, Maresca will have learned a great deal about the flexibility of his squad during their summer in the United States.

[Vesper 30,095]

2025 Club World Cup final: All you need to know, tactical analysis of both teams and how to watch

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6483230/2025/07/09/club-world-cup-final-Chelsea-psg/

The final for the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup is set.

After a valiant fight from teams across the globe, from South America, to the Middle East, to Africa, East Asia and Oceania, it is two European titans who collide in the showpiece final on Sunday, July 13.

Much has been made of the gruelling calendar the summer tournament has thrust upon its participants, but Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain have outlasted the rest in the searing American heat in their hunt for the trophy — and healthy prize fund on offer.

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How did the teams get here?

Unfamiliar opponents have been a consistent theme through Chelsea’s run to the final. In four of their six matches in the Club World Cup, Chelsea have met their opponents for the first time in history. Only one side in their run, Benfica, they have met more than twice. But Enzo Maresca’s side handled their draw with relative ease.

Chelsea’s 3-1 defeat to Flamengo in the group stages proves the only blight on their record, having been a player down for the final 22 minutes of the match when Nicolas Jackson was sent off for a high challenge on Lucas Ayrton while 2-1 behind, for which he later apologised.

Their second-placed finish in Group D was ensured with comfortable victories over Los Angeles FC and Esperance Tunis. That seeding perhaps worked in their favour, drawing Benfica in the last 16 rather than facing Bayern Munich, who group victors Flamengo went on to suffer defeat against.

After Angel Di Maria’s stoppage-time penalty ensured the first knockout match would go the distance, Chelsea capitalised on Gianluca Prestianni’s sending off to notch three extra-time goals and continue in the tournament. A second-ever meeting with Palmeiras followed, with Cole Palmer’s early strike and a Weverton own-goal setting Maresca’s side up against yet more Brazilian opposition in the semi-final, Fluminense.

In a reunion with former defender Thiago Silva, Chelsea emerged 2-0 victors. Joao Pedro, who had signed for the club just a week prior, scored both goals against the team where his career began, sending his side to the final.

 

Joao Pedro had a Chelsea debut to remember (Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

PSG have continued where they left off following the record 5-0 victory over Inter in the Champions League final which capped off their treble-winning season.

Igor Jesus’ goal in the 1-0 defeat to Botafogo proved the only dent in the otherwise perfect defensive record held by Luis Enrique’s side, who dispatched Atletico Madrid 4-0 in their opener, and Seattle Sounders 2-0 in their final group match.

Four first-half goals were enough to see PSG oust Inter Miami, and their former star forward Lionel Messi from the tournament in the round-of-16.

A subsequent 2-0 victory over German champions Bayern Munich continued PSG’s run, despite receiving two red cards late on. Ousmane Dembele scored the second while his side was reduced to nine players, and his return from injury has been a timely reminder of his importance to the team this season.

The Parisians’ dominant run continued in the semi-finals as they effortlessly dispatched Real Madrid 4-0.

 

Dembele was on the scoresheet against Madrid (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

How to watch the final

Chelsea will face PSG at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey on Sunday, July 13, with kick-off slated for 3pm local time (8pm BST).

The 82,500-seater venue hosted one quarter-final (Madrid v Dortmund) and both semi-finals before Sunday’s showpiece, and indeed, will also host the final of next year’s FIFA World Cup, held in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

As was the case for every match as this year’s Club World Cup, the final is available to watch via DAZN providing you create an account. The final is also available to watch through TNT and truTV in the United States.

Tactical analysis of Chelsea

By Conor O’Neill

The knockout draw may have opened up kindly for Chelsea, with the European heavyweights on the other side, but Maresca’s men have taken full advantage, cruising through their semi-final 2-0 against Fluminense.

Tactically, Maresca has used the softer opposition as something of a testing ground, not just to trial ideas for next season, but also to embed new signings into his style of play on the fly.

But as the stakes have risen, the setup has taken on a more familiar shape. Talisman Cole Palmer, for instance, is back in his favoured right-half space after a spell on the left, and a more settled approach is expected as Chelsea gear up to take on the might of PSG/Real Madrid in Sunday’s final.

While personnel and positional responsibilities have been tinkered with, the core principles guiding their play have remained largely unchanged during their time in the US. The focus, as it was in the Premier League last season, is on maintaining controlled, methodical possession – Chelsea have played just 4.5 per cent of their passes long at the Club World Cup, the second-lowest rate behind Manchester City (3.4 per cent).

But when their patient probing approach does find an opening, they strike with speed and venom. Six of their goals have come from fast breaks, the highest in the competition, fleet-footed wideman Pedro Neto scoring three of them.

The most pressing question is who will be trusted to lead the line after new signing Joao Pedro sensationally lit up the semi-final with two stunning efforts. Joao Pedro’s versatility allows him to drop deep and help stitch attacks together, but Liam Delap and Nicolas Jackson remain potent alternatives if Maresca opts for a more traditional, backline-stretching No 9 on Sunday.

Tactical analysis of PSG

By Conor O’Neill

If PSG are crowned champions on Sunday, it will give a FIFA-approved rubber stamp to what many already consider the best team in the world. They remain a side capable of hurting opponents in countless ways, with 10 different goalscorers contributing across their Club World Cup campaign.

Their 4-0 evisceration of Inter Miami in the quarter-finals showcased that multifaceted brilliance. The technically gifted midfield trio of Joao Neves, Vitinha, and Fabian Ruiz controlled possession with ease, rendering Lionel Messi little more than an onlooker, while relentless pressing from the front saw them win the ball back almost instantly whenever it was lost.

Up top, the wide pairing of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Desire Doue have sparkled once again. Doue leads the tournament for attempted take-ons, with Kvaratskhelia close behind in third. Their quick feet, fluid movement inside, and constant rotations make them incredibly difficult to track and contain.

For all their attacking brilliance, PSG’s progression to the final has been built on a rock-solid defence, with just one goal conceded throughout the competition.

Luis Enrique has only lightly tinkered with their tactical approach en route to the final. And with the Parisians ruthlessly sweeping aside all before them in recent months, he’s little reason to disrupt a purring, seamless winning machine.

How much are tickets?

The Athletic has provided ongoing coverage of changes in ticket prices at the inaugural Club World Cup in the United States this year. For the semi-final between Chelsea and Fluminense, prices had originally been set at $473.90, but were later reduced to $13.40. This is not an isolated incident, with prices also slashed for other matches, including the other semi-final between Madrid and PSG, and some quarter-final matches.

The cheapest general admission tickets for the final are currently priced at $312.20, via Ticketmaster through FIFA’s official website. On the higher end of the pricing scale, the system also offers verified resale tickets in some prime positions of the stadium, varying from around $1,400 to $8,000.

How much prize money is on offer?

Whoever wins in East Rutherford will walk away from the summer tournament up to $125million (£92m) richer in participation and prize money. For whoever falls just short, their total will not be far off.

FIFA provided a $1billion prize pot for the tournament, shared out in differing proportions among its participants, and based on clubs’ progression.

UEFA clubs secured the larger slice of the pie with some clubs, namely Porto and Atletico Madrid, taking home a bigger sum than the likes of Al Hilal, Inter Miami and Monterrey, despite crashing out of the tournament sooner than their non-European counterparts.

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Both finalists earned $30m just for making it to the tournament’s showcase final — an extra $10m for the winner is but a small percentage of their overall earnings.

The victor will not just walk away with money and a trophy, however. A commemorative badge, alike to that of the addition of a star for winning the regular World Cup, will adorn the kit of Sunday’s winner for the next four years.

A similar badge has been seen on Manchester City’s kit since they won the Club World Cup in its previous format in 2023, placed between the club emblem and Puma logo.

When is the next Club World Cup?

The introduction of the Club World Cup in its new form has not been short of challenges. And despite opposition from the likes of FIFPro, the global players’ union, the tournament is set to go ahead every four years.

The Athletic reported in December that FIFA was considering hosting its newest club competition in the U.S. once again in 2029, while in June, the Brazilian Football Federation (CBF) said in a statement its newly-elected president Sami Xaud held a meeting his FIFA counterpart Gianni Infantino over the possibility of holding the Club World Cup in the South American nation.

Meanwhile, James Johnson, Football Australia’s chief executive, told the Sydney Morning Herald in June 2023 that his country would consider bidding for the 2029 hosting rights.

[ahmedou 188]

 Last 6 European finals! Unbeaten!

[NikkiCFC 8,287]

Biggest game in the history of clubs football. 

[Vesper 30,095]

1 hour ago, ahmedou said:

 Last 6 European finals! Unbeaten!

That graphic is very wrong.

Post 2012 CL win

international title games we have lost:

 

2012 UEFA Super Cup - We lost 1 4 to Atletico Madrid 

2012 FIFA World Club Cup - We lost nil 1 to Corinthians 

2013 UEFA Super Cup - We lost on pens to Bayern, the Lukaku fail

2019 UEFA Super Cup - We lost on pens to Pool, the Tammy fail

[LAM09 7,043]

11 hours ago, Vesper said:

I so wish Lavia was fit to go, but alas, the glass man has broken again

I agree. It feels like he's someone we'll never be able to fully rely on similar to James.