Chelsea’s players will be looking to cause a shock when they take on Paris Saint-Germain this weekend.
Chelsea and PSG go head-to-head this Sunday in the United States, where they will be competing in the final of the Club World Cup.
Even though PSG are the strong favourites for the cup final, it’s worth remembering that the Blues have won 13 of their previous 15 matches across all competitions.
Four Chelsea stars featured in the Club World Cup Team of the Week after Enzo Maresca’s side beat Fluminense 2-0 in the semi-finals. Meanwhile, PSG dismantled Real Madrid 4-0 on the other half of the draw.
- READ MORE: Thiago Silva shares who he will be supporting out of Chelsea and PSG in the Club World Cup final
Reece James talks up Enzo Fernandez before cup final
Ahead of the Club World Cup final, Chelsea captain Reece James, 25, has been on media duties, speaking in a pre-match press conference.
He was asked directly about Blues teammate Enzo Fernandez, and he delivered some very kind words. In particular, James acknowledges that the 24-year-old midfielder has massively improved in the past couple of years, plus he expects him to be crucial against PSG in the final.
The Chelsea captain said via the club’s YouTube channel: “Enzo Fernandez is an amazing player. An amazing person. He’s come on so much since he arrived at Chelsea. He’s a huge part of Chelsea Football Club. A huge player for our team. He will play a big part on Sunday.”
We agree that Fernandez has grown in stature in Chelsea colours since he joined from Benfica two-and-a-half years ago.
Chelsea believe Fernandez is part of their ‘elite’ midfield. In fairness, the Argentine star has been truly outstanding in Maresca’s system for the majority of the 2024/25 season.
| Appearances | Goals | Assists |
| 52 | 9 | 17 |
Fernandez, the box-to-box central midfielder, is now getting ready for perhaps his toughest assignment. It’s quite clear that PSG’s midfield trio of Vitinha, Joao Neves and Fabian Ruiz is a world-class unit, so it will be interesting to see how Chelsea compare on Sunday.
What Jamie O’Hara said about Enzo Fernandez last September now looks laughable
Back in September 2024, pundit Jamie O’Hara slammed Chelsea star Fernandez. He said: “I am not having Enzo Fernandez. I am not having him. I don’t think he is good enough… I don’t think he deserves to play in midfield.”
In fairness, Fernandez’s form was up and down for the first 18 months of his Chelsea career.
But it’s quite clear that the South American ace has gone to another level under Maresca, emerging as a significant goalscoring threat with his runs forward from midfield.
Like teammate Moises Caicedo, Fernandez is now showing on a consistent basis why he cost over £100m because he can do a bit of everything in the centre of the park.
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