The Champions League winners Chelsea can now call themselves the champions of the world after lifting the first-ever FIFA Club World Cup trophy in their history. In an end-to-end contest with Palmeiras that went right down to the wire, Kai Havertz converted his late spot-kick to seal a monumental victory for Thomas Tuchel’s side.
Havertz, the man who sealed the UEFA Champions League for Chelsea, allowing them to play the FIFA Club World Cup in the first place, proved to be the hero of the night once again. With three minutes remaining in extra-time, the German converted his spot-kick to send thousands of Chelsea supporters into a frenzy in Abu Dhabi.
The first half between the two teams turned out to be just how Thomas Tuchel had predicted in the pre-match media interaction. Palmeiras were more than happy with allowing Chelsea to have the majority of possession while they maintained their defensive lines.
The Brazilian club were extremely disciplined and persistent and were a tough unit to break down, and neither side managed to create good-looking chances in the first 45 minutes. The Blues also had to suffer a massive blow when Mason Mount suffered an injury within the first half an hour and had to be brought off.
The game erupted into life when Callum Hudson-Odoi controlled Mateo Kovacic’s long ball and sprayed a cross into the box which was met by the head of Romelu Lukaku.
However, the lead did not last long as Thiago Silva was adjudged to have handled the ball in his own box, thus gifting a penalty to Palmeiras. Raphael Veiga stepped up and restored parity in the contest.
The game petered out into extra time as neither team managed to re-take the lead in the final. It seemed that penalties would be required to separate the two sides but just three minutes before the end of extra-time, it was Chelsea’s turn to receive a penalty after VAR ruled that Luan Garcia had blocked Cesar Azpilicueta’s strike with his hand.
In front of raucous supporters, Havertz kept his nerves and converted his penalty to decide the fate of the final. Palmeiras’ misery was finally complete when Luan was sent off in added time of extra time after bringing down Havertz with a rash challenge.
