Chelsea didn’t do it the easy way when they won the first Club World Cup in their history a few years ago.
Back in the 2021/22 season, Chelsea competed in the 2021 Club World Cup tournament, which was contested between seven clubs from six different confederations. Incidentally, the club competition was actually held in February 2022 in the United Arab Emirates.
The Blues ended up beating Brazilian giants Palmeiras in the final by a 2-1 scoreline after extra time.
- READ MORE: Jorginho shared how he and two Chelsea teammates led dressing room during 2021 Club World Cup
Thiago Silva won Golden Ball award despite big mistake in the final
The Blues edged past Al-Hilal 1-0 in the semi-finals before the victory over Palmeiras in the final.
Thiago Silva, who was a key player at the time for Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea side, played every minute of the 2021 Club World Cup tournament. The veteran centre-back then picked up the Golden Ball individual prize, which is awarded to the best player of the tournament.
Gary Lineker applauded Silva after his Club World Cup success with Chelsea a few years ago.
However, he actually nearly cost his team in the final against Palmeiras.
Romelu Lukaku put the Premier League side ahead in the 54th minute, but the final went to extra time because of Raphael Veiga’s equaliser from the penalty spot. After an intervention from VAR, Silva was penalised for a handball in the box after an awkward jump to give Palmeiras their route back into the match.
Thankfully, Kai Havertz’s late 117th penalty restored Chelsea’s lead and earned the trophy.
Silva, who played at Stamford Bridge between 2020 and 2024, made very few mistakes in Chelsea colours. He must have been relieved that the penalty kick he conceded in the Club World Cup final never cost his side.
Now aged 40, the legendary defender is still playing for Fluminense. In fact, Silva swapped shirts with Trevoh Chalobah after Fluminense played Chelsea recently in this summer’s edition of the Club World Cup.
Chelsea will look to make history on Sunday
In the modern day, Chelsea are currently preparing for the Club World Cup final against Paris Saint-Germain this Sunday in the United States.
The 2025 Club World Cup, the inaugural edition as a 32-team tournament, has run over the course of the last month. Enzo Maresca’s side have been impressive en route to the final, too.
Chelsea’s income of £86m at the Club World Cup has made their run to the final a profitable one. They will go into the weekend’s final against Luis Enrique’s PSG side as underdogs, though.
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