Chelsea Dismantles Paris Saint-Germain to Win the FIFA Club World Cup

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On July 13th, the first-ever revamped version of the FIFA Club World Cup came to an emphatic conclusion as Chelsea upset the odds to beat the heavily favored Paris Saint-Germain and secure the title. Heading into the MetLife Stadium showpiece, many had made the Blues a mighty outsider, with some outlets pricing them as long as 4/1. However, the English side paid no attention to that and flipped the script in the Big Apple.

The talismanic Cole Palmer was the star of the show. The young Englishman scored a brilliant early brace, with one goal being almost a carbon copy of the other, to give Chelsea a shock 2-0 lead. Then, the former Manchester City young star turned provider, setting up new signing Joao Pedro, who chipped over PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to secure a scarcely believable 3-0 halftime lead.

Throughout the second half, the Parisians never threatened a comeback, and Chelsea emerged as the early victors despite online gambling sites giving them pretty much no hope. Now, the Blues head back to England looking to upset the odds once again. The latest online gambling at Bovada odds currently makes the Londoners a 13/2 outsider for the title, some way behind reigning champions and 2/1 frontrunners Liverpool.

But how did Chelsea complete the ultimate shocker?

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Let's find out.

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Peaking at the Perfect Time

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Chelsea headed into the Club World Cup full of confidence. They had just secured are turn to the UEFA Champions League after two years away, as well as be coming the first team in history to win all three of UEFA's marquee club competitions with an emphatic 4-1 victory against Real Betis in the Conference League final in Wrocław. However, their American adventure didn't get off to the perfect start.

The Blues ran out 2-0 victors in their tournament opener against Los Angeles FC in front of a huge crowd in Atlanta, but the Californian side had plenty of scoring opportunities in the defeat. Then, in the second group game, Brazilian table toppers Flamengo took those opportunities that their American counterparts couldn't. Goals from Bruno Henrique, Danilo, and Wallace Yan gave the Rio de Janeiro outfit a deserved 3-1 victory and secured them top spot in Group D.

Little did Flamengo know, however, that the victory would ultimately be their downfall. Their finishing top of Group D put the Brazilian side in the more difficult half of the knockout stage draw. So while they had a round of 16 clash against Bayern Munich to look forward to, Chelsea had a much more favorable clash against Benfica. And it was this favorable route that saw Chelsea progress all the way to the final.

Chelsea managed to hold their nerve and navigate a lengthy thunderstorm break to ultimately beat Benfica in extra time. Then, a late Weverton own goal saw the Blues edge past Palmeiras in the quarterfinal, before racking up a comfortable 2-0 victory over another Brazilian side, Fluminense, punched their tickets to the final. There, Paris Saint-Germain were supposed to bring the fairytale run to a bitter end, but they too were powerless to resist.

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Palmer Steals the Show

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All the talk in the build-up to the final was surrounding how Chelsea would cope with a relentless PSG attack that had put five past Inter Milan, four past Atletico Madrid, and four past Real Madrid all in the span of the last month. One member of the press even asked Blues boss Enzo Maresca in his pre-match press conference as to how his side would cope with the reigning European champions having the vast majority of possession in the final. The Italian simply replied with "Who said that?" indicating that his side had no intention of surrendering possession, and that ultimately proved to be the case.

From the outset, Chelsea immediately stamped their authority on proceedings. They were pressing PSG from the get-go, and once they had the ball, they weren't wasteful. They took their time with their build-up, playing around a Parisian defense that looked as out of sorts as Real Madrid's had when they were dismantled in the semifinal.

Cole Palmer was without question the star of the show, just as he has been so many times for Chelsea over the last two years. His first goal was a stunner, cutting inside from the right-hand side, gliding into the box, before coolly slotting past Donnarumma into the bottom left-hand corner. His second seven minutes later, he would repeat the same breathtaking finish, before assisting João Pedro shortly after to make it three.

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Throughout the second half, PSG never looked like getting back into the game before losing their heads late on. João Neves was sent off for pulling Marc Cucurella's long flowing locks with four minutes remaining. After the full-time whistle was blown, manager Luis Enrique also lost his cool, seemingly grabbing João Pedro by the throat before making his way back down the tunnel. But none of that truly matters, and Chelsea can now call themselves champions of the world...Not many will ever sing that.