Chelsea vs Palmeiras – Preview, H2H, Line-ups, Prediction | FIFA Club World Cup 2021-22

N'Golo Kante and Jorginho of Chelsea
N'Golo Kante and Jorginho of Chelsea

European champions Chelsea will look to lift their first-ever Club World Cup on Sunday when they face South-American side Palmeiras in the FIFA Club World Cup final in Abu Dhabi. 

Venue: Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium (Abu Dhabi)

Key Statistics

Chelsea have lost just one of their last 16 games inside 90 minutes (W8, D7).

The Blues are the only European team to lose a CWC final since 2006. 

Palmeiras have been unbeaten in competitive action since late November (W7, D3).

The South American side kept six clean sheets in their last seven games. 

Head to head

This is the first meeting between both sides. 

Latest performances in all competitions

Chelsea: W-W-WD-L

Palmeiras: W-W-D-W-W

Chelsea

Chelsea will look to make their trip to Abu Dhabi worthwhile by winning the Club World Cup when they play Palmeiras in the final on Sunday.

The Blues beat Al-Hilal 1-0 in the previous round courtesy of a solitary strike from Romelu Lukaku

The last time the London-based club were in this tournament, they ended without success as Brazilian side Corinthians beat them in the final.

They have averaged just 1.2 goals per game across their last six competitive fixtures (W4, D1, L1), but they have not conceded more than a goal in a match since conceding two against Leeds United in early December. 

Meanwhile, the fact that three of the last four CWC finals were decided by a single goal margin will give Chelsea some measure of confidence. Also, the fact that no Brazilian side has ever scored 2+ goals in a CWC final provides this game with the makings of another low-scoring affair. 

Possible Chelsea starting line-up

Kepa Arrizabalaga; Cesar Azpilicueta, Andreas Christensen, Antonio Rudiger, Malang Sarr; Mason Mount, Jorginho, Mateo Kovacic; Mason Mount, Romelu Lukaku, Callum Hudson-Odoi.

Injured: Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, 

Doubtful: None 

Suspended: None 

Palmeiras 

After winning their semi-final against Al Ahly 2-0, the Copa Libertadores champions will look to conquer the world on Sunday when they face Chelsea in the final.

The South Americans have remained unbeaten in competitive action since late November (W7, D3). They kept a clean sheet in six of their last seven fixtures (W5, D1) and came into this tie full of confidence.

They have had an extra day’s rest heading into this final, which might help as they look to do what fellow Brazilian sides Grêmio (2017) and Flamengo (2019) couldn’t do. 

Should they win this game, they’ll become the first Brazilian team to claim the CWC since 2012 when Corinthians beat Chelsea in that year’s final.

Possible Palmeiras starting line-up

Weverton; Jorge, Luan Garcia, Gustavo Gómez, Marcos Rocha; Danilo, Ze Rafael; Gustavo Scarpa, Raphael Veiga, Dudu; Rony..

Injured: None 

Doubtful: None 

Suspended: None 

Prediction

Chelsea 2-1 Palmeiras