Sports
Four Key Facts As Chelsea Are Crowned Club World Champions
By Eze Dike
Chelsea have been crowned Club World Cup champions for the first time in their illustrious history after beating Palmeiras in the final.
After seeing off Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal in the Semis 1-0 via Romelu Lukaku, Chelsea produced an even better performance to see off the impressive Brazilian champions Palmeiras to claim victory.
The Blues struggled in the early stages to break down Palmeiras low-block, and it was the Brazilian outfit that looked the more likely to score as winger Dudu worked a couple of opportunities but could not quite take advantage.
Abel Ferreira would have been the happier of the two managers going into the break, but early in the second half Callum Hudson-Odoi’s pinpoint cross found Romelu Lukaku, and the Belgian beat two defenders in the air to nod past goalkeeper Weverton.
Shortly afterwards, the impressive Thiago Silva who was eventually the man of the match and the player of the tournament, conceded a penalty incomprehensibly handling the ball in the box, presenting a goal scoring opportunity for the opponents which was taken splendidly by Raphael Veiga.
The match proceeded to extra time and it was the German midfielder Kai Havertz who produced the decisive moment with three minutes to play, slotting home from the penalty spot to secure a first Club World Cuo trophy for the Blues. We outline four key facts from the crowning of Chelsea as Club World Cup champions:
• The Blues now become the third English team to emerge as world champions, after Manchester United and Liverpool previously achieved that feat in 2009 and 2019 respectively.
• Chelsea have now won all the major trophies possible in the Roman Abrahmovic era since the Russian took over in 2004, adding another feather to their cap with the Club World Cup triumph.
• Kai Havertz is the first player to score the match-winning goal in both the UEFA Champions League final and then the subsequent FIFA Club World Cup since Lionel Messi for Barcelona in 2011.
• Romelu Lukaku is now Chelsea’s outright top scorer in all competitions this season with 10 goals, with the Belgian scoring 10+ goals in each of his last ten club seasons.
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