Palmeiras and Chelsea FC last faced each other just over three years ago in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup™ final (formerly know as the FIFA Club World Cup), but it feels like much more time has passed for these two as they prepare to meet in the USA.
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Of the 32 players who entered the pitch in that final, which Chelsea won 2-1, Palmeiras goalkeeper Weverton is expected to be the only starting XI survivor for Friday’s rematch in Philadelphia. The Verdão still have head coach Abel Ferreira, who has been with the club since November 2020, while Chelsea, who were managed by Thomas Tuchel at the time, are now led by Italian coach Enzo Maresca.
Despite the continuity of the coaching staff and the winning cycle under their Portuguese manager, Palmeiras have constantly refreshed their squad season after season. As a result, only five starters from the Intercontinental Cup final – including Weverton – remain at the club.
Two of them, centre-back Gustavo Gomez and left-back Joaquin Piquerez, will miss the clash against Chelsea due to picking up too many yellow cards. The other two, right-back Marcos Rocha and midfielder Raphael Veiga, have started matches in this Club World Cup campaign, but unless Ferreira pulls a surprise with his line-up, they are likely to begin Friday’s quarter-final on the bench.
For Chelsea, it would be far quicker to list the things which are still the same since that continental showdown, with the Blues undergoing a serious overhaul right across the club.
There are only two first-team players who remain at Stamford Bridge. Reece James is now captain of his boyhood club, but didn’t feature in that Intercontinental Cup final due to injury. Trevoh Chalobah was also on the bench in Abu Dhabi, and has played twice so far during the Club World Cup. Further changes in the dugout and ownership mean this is a totally new-look club.
The final took place at the Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium on 12 February 2022. The Blues opened the scoring through Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku nine minutes into the second half, before Veiga levelled it up from the penalty spot shortly after. The title, much like the UEFA Champions League triumph of 2021, was decided by Kai Havertz, as the German netted a penalty of his own eight minutes from the end of extra time.
By winning that title, Chelsea had won every trophy available to them. They then added the recently-formed UEFA Conference League to that list, and will be keen on completing their set once again in the States. For Palmeiras, though, they’ll be hell-bent on revenge, while they still have the prospect of being the best-performing South American side at these finals.
