Your own problem: João Pedro did not spare his former team and led Chelsea to the final

European clubs will play in the Club World Cup final.

CWC. Semifinal
July 8. East Rutherford. MetLife Stadium
Fluminense — Chelsea 0:2
Goals: João Pedro (18, 56).
Fluminense: Fábio, Ignacio, Silva, Santos (Keno, 54), Guga, Bernal (Lima, 70), Hercules (Canobbio, 70), Rene, Nonato (Soteldo, 66), Arias, Cano (Everaldo, 54).
Chelsea: Sanchez, Gusto (James, 68), Adarabioyo, Chalobah, Cucurella, Caicedo, Fernandez (Santos, 86), Palmer, Nkunku (Dewsbury-Hall, 86), Neto (Madueke, 68), Pedro (Jackson, 60).
Warnings: Nonato (59), Soteldo (72), Sanchez (73).

Two veterans and problems

Chelsea is running the Club World Cup as if it is on tour in Brazil. The Blues lost to Flamengo, who could show dominant football in the group stage (1:3), and in the quarterfinals overcame the equally strong Palmeiras (2:1). The only thing missing for a complete set was a match against Botafogo, the most defensive team of the tournament, who left after losing to Palmeiras (0:1) in the quarterfinals. Fluminense was the Brazilian team that went the furthest, which is largely the merit of coach Renato Gaúcho.

The team, ranked sixth in the Brazilian league, has a less stellar squad compared to other national representatives at the World Cup. There are such experienced players as 44-year-old goalkeeper Fábio and 40-year-old Thiago Silva, as well as continental-level stars: Colombian Arias and 37-year-old Argentine striker Cano. However, Fluminense could not find adequate replacements for two key players who were suspended. Of course, Hercules scored two important goals during the tournament, but he is not at Martinelli's level, and veteran Thiago, who played only 18 minutes in the USA, is no longer as mobile as Freites. Moreover, due to Samuel Chaver's injury, Guga had to play at right-back.

Your own problem

Against this background, Enzo Maresca had no reason to complain about his team's difficulties. In the quarterfinals, Chelsea had to reorganize the holding zone, but before this match there were no problems. Caicedo returned to the squad, and the absence of Colwill and Delap was not felt thanks to the wide roster of Londoners. João Pedro was bought a week before the game and registered for the playoffs.

It was this player who opened the score in the 18th minute. Former Chelsea player Silva unsuccessfully tried to clear the ball from the penalty area, and the striker, with a curling shot from his right foot, sent the ball into the net and, as promised, did not celebrate his first goal for his new team. The player, bought from Brighton for £60 million, even apologized to Fluminense fans, as he joined the club's academy at 10, played a year for the first team, and moved to Europe at 18.

Chelsea continued to attack, but the Brazilians—as has been seen several times in this tournament—were able to withstand the pressure and create their own chances even under strong pressing. In the 26th minute, Hercules found himself in such a situation, shot past the goalkeeper, but the shot was weak and Cucurella managed to clear the ball off the line.

Ten minutes later, after a set-piece, the ball hit Chalobah's hand; the main referee, François Letexier, pointed to the penalty spot, but after watching VAR, changed his decision: the defender's hand was in a natural position.

At the end of the half, Hercules, left alone in the center of the box after a great pass from Guga, failed to shoot on target.

Gaúcho's risk

At halftime, Chelsea's coaching staff drew the necessary conclusions and made adjustments. In the second half, the Blues took control of the ball and started to tire the Brazilians with positional attacks. With short passes, they killed time and tried to surprise the opponent with sudden attacks. In one such moment, after a shot by Cucurella, the ball narrowly missed the post.

Gaúcho realized that he could not achieve a result with this style and, for the first time in the playoffs, abandoned his scheme with three central defenders. Everaldo, who came on as a substitute, shot at the near post, Sanchez made a heroic save, another joker, Keno, created another promising attack, which was a wake-up call for the London staff. But soon Chelsea found gaps in the opponent's defense. Even rough play from the Brazilians did not stop them.

This could not stop Palmer. Cole, staying on his feet after a tackle by two opponents, kept the ball and passed to Enzo Fernandez, who sent it forward to João Pedro, who easily beat Ignacio and with another beautiful shot practically decided the outcome of the match, again apologizing to the Fluminense fans.

The opponent's players still did not forgive him: a few minutes after the second goal, Nonato hit him on the leg. The hero of the match escaped injury, but Maresca decided to save him and took him off. His substitute, Nicolas Jackson, showed why he ended up on the bench: being in front of an open goal, instead of passing to Palmer, he shot wide.

In the remaining time, Silva, after a shot by Christopher Nkunku, cleared the ball off the goal line, saving his team from a rout.

The Brazilians can leave the tournament with their heads held high. Chelsea, meanwhile, unexpectedly reached the final and will now try to win their second intercontinental title. In the first attempt in 2012, the club lost to Corinthians; nine years later, they beat Palmeiras. Now, the final will be against another European representative—the winner of the PSG–Real pair.
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