They saved the drama until the eleventh hour, or the 117th minute to be precise, but ultimately Kai Havertz’s penalty meant that Chelsea could finally count themselves world champions, joining Manchester United and Liverpool among the pantheon of English clubs afforded that honour.
Just as in Porto last May, it was the German striker who proved decisive, carving his name again into the Chelsea annals and silencing the huge following of Palmeiras fans, whose passion had transformed this occasion from a soul-less corporate affair into genuine global football final.
And, just as in Portugal, but this time at the Mohammed Bin Zayed stadium on the edge of the Arabian Desert, it was Cesar Azpilicueta who took centre stage to raise a trophy as his euphoric team-mates bounced up and down in celebration behind him. In May it was the Champions League, in August the UEFA Super Cup and now FIFA’s World Club Cup.
Chelsea were crowned champions of the world after beating Palmeiras 2-1 in the Club World Cup final on Saturday evening
Captain Cesar Azpilicueta (centre) lifted the golden trophy in the Arabian desert of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates
Forward Kai Havertz (right) scored the decisive goal, finishing from the penalty spot in the 118th minute, deep into extra time
The penalty was awarded after Azpilicueta’s header from a Hakim Ziyech corner was ruled to have hit the hand of Luan (No 13)
FIFA President Gianni Infantino (centre) formally congratulated Blues boss Thomas Tuchel (left) and handed him his medal
This tournament might seem a mid-season diversion for some but all week Chelsea’s technical advisor Petr Cech had impressed on these players how he regretted losing this final in 2012. And if they needed a reminder of how seriously the event is taken globally, they needed only to survey the 15,000 Palmeiras fans flown out from Sao Paulo.
This may not have been Chelsea’s finest hour nor their most-elegantly won trophy. But they did it. ‘We struggle in this moment,’ conceded Thomas Tuchel. ‘We don’t play our best football but as Petr Cech says many times, we managed to find a way to win. For this, the team deserves full credit.’ They do. They dominated possession, switched to 4-2-4 for extra time and at least attempted to seize the initiative even if their fluidity was somewhat lacking.
They had travelled far and wide to get here. Edouard Mendy, starting in goal having flown in from Cameroon, an African Nations’ winner last weekend and a world champion this weekend. Tuchel had just about made it time from Covid isolation, revealing that more than once he had been called back while en route to the airport because his PCR tests were still coming up positive.
Before the game former Palmeiras defender Cafu (left) and ex-Chelsea striker Claudio Pizarro (right) brought the trophy out
The ball fell to Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta (front left) in an early chance but he had his back to goal and was well closed down
The Campeonato Brasileiro Série A top-tier side made several small, niggly fouls in the first half to disrupt Chelsea’s rhythm
Blues midfielder Mason Mount (right, No 19) limped off in the first half and was replaced by American winger Christian Pulisic
Even Roman Abramovich dropped in from Israel to embrace Tuchel on the pitch, paying one of his rare visit to see the club he transformed in 2003. Twenty one trophies have been won in 19 years. For those that remembering the lumbering teams of the 1980s, Chelsea as world champions is still a little ludicrous. Tuchel told him the owner the trophy was his. ‘Your passion made it possible,’ he said.
By the end there a was a degree of pandemonium. The lights had gone out in the stadium, the sound system failed and only the fireworks lit up the Arabian night. The Chelsea players stood around a little bewildered, having only a small knot of supporter with which to celebrate.
As in the match, there was confusion at the denouement. A penalty shoot-out had loomed when Hakim Ziyech teed up a late corner in the second period of extra time.
It fell for Azpilicueta and his shot on the volley fairly cannoned off the hand of Luan, which was somewhat carelessly hanging mid air. Play went on as Azpilicueta and Antonio Rudiger swarmed around referee Chris Heath. Even given the propensity of footballers to exaggerate in order to influence, they seemed pretty certain.
Brazilian goalkeeper Weverton challenged sub Pulisic for a dangerous cross but won a free-kick after falling awkwardly
A small but vocal contingent of Chelsea supporters made their way to the Middle East to support their side, with flags aplenty
And at the Allianz Parque stadium in Sao Paulo, Brazil – the home of Palmeiras – supporters gathered to cheer their team on
The £100million summer signing Romelu Lukaku (right) opened the scoring just after the hour, heading home emphatically
The Belgian (pictured) met Callum Hudson-Odoi’s perfect left-wing cross powerfully and sank to his knees in celebration
When the ball finally went out of play, Heath was called to the VAR monitor and a penalty was awarded. Havertz stepped up and despite a concerted intimidation campaign by the Palmeiras, with Rudiger acting as chief protector, he kept his cool and shot home. The unfortunate Luan’s evening would then come to an end with virtually the final kick of the game, when he was sent off for a professional foul on Havertz.
The stadium may not have been full with 32,817 here but the constant din from the Palmeiras fans provided a necessary edge to a game. They too had travelled from far and wide: ‘Palmeiras Dublin’ read one huge banner. The Sao Paulo club won a prototype World Club trophy in 1951 but have never been officially acknowledged as such, unlike most of the Brazilian super clubs. These fans had travelled desperate to right that wrong.
After pre-match pyrotechnics, there were few fireworks on the pitch early on with Palmeiras’ 4-2-31 regularly reverting to a back six to take care of Chelsea’s wing backs. While Chelsea had little coherence, struggling to free their front players, Palmeiras were so deep they had limited options in attack when they did win the ball.
That said, Chelsea’s defensive laxness almost cost them on 28 minutes, when, on the break, Ze Rafael sprinted clear and then released Dudu in plenty of space. The pass though was slightly behind him and he consequently shot wide.
But Palmeiras were level less than 10 minutes later, defender Thiago Silva ruled to have handballed inside the penalty area
Australian referee Chris Beath was advised by the fourth official to check the incident, consulted VAR then gave the spot-kick
Palmeiras attacker Raphael Veiga stepped up, composed himself and sent Blues goalkeeper Edouard Mendy the wrong way
Veiga, also a scorer in the Copa Libertadores final, sent the Brazilian fans into raptures and was mobbed by team-mates
Chelsea chances up until the 50th minute came from long-range efforts from Thiago Silva and Rudiger, which spoke volumes of their difficulties to create.
Yet suddenly a spark came on 55 minutes. It emerged unexpectedly, an injection of energy into a mediocre performance. Mateo Kovacic found Callum Hudson-Odoi wide left and his pace gained him a crucial yard of space. Finally a player was at the by-line and Hudson-Odoi didn’t disappoint with a superb cross, beautifully weighted almost on to the forehead of Lukaku, leaping to nod home his second goal of this tournament.
The euphoria didn’t last long. Thiago Silva leapt with unnecessarily dangly arms to meet a long throw aimed at Gusatvo Gomez. The ball struck his hand and though Australian referee missed it initially, a VAR check put that right. Raphael Viega stepped up, sent Mendy the wrong way to strike the ball into the right-hand corner.
Now the Mohammed Bin Zayed stadium erupted and it felt like we had been transported to Sao Paulo rather than to a skyscraper city in the Arabian peninsula. Chelsea responded to the increased intensity. N’Golo Kante embarked on a driving run, fed Lukaku, who touched the ball back to Christian Pulisic, who drove his shot just wide. It was though an encouragingly fluid combination.
Yet they were back to square one, attempting to break down a solid opponent. A largely uneventful extra time was initially enlivened only by Christian Pulisic’s bundled effort looping on to the bar. Then came the drama and, eventually, the cup. It might not have been spectacular but it was at least historic.
Palmeiras boss Abel Ferreira (above) was an animated figure on the touchline, constantly encouraging his players throughout
Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel (pictured), for his part, was a more subdued figure but still barked orders from the touchline
With the match level at 1-1 after 90 minutes, the ex-Paris Saint-Germain boss gave his players instructions before extra time
Want to relive the action? Live coverage of the Club World Cup final between Chelsea and Palmeiras was provided by Sportsmail‘s Max Mathews.
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