FIFA Club World Cup Final: The ferocious monster and the unyielding one

(Dan Tri) - Chelsea must face a huge challenge from Paris Saint Germain (PSG). Will coach Enzo Maresca succeed in his "chess game" when The Blues are weaker than their opponents?

* The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup final between Chelsea and PSG takes place at MetLife Stadium (USA) at 2:00 a.m. on July 14.

PSG - The ferocious monster

“Hang this masterpiece in the Louvre,” one fan commented after the recent FIFA Club World Cup semi-final between PSG and Real Madrid at MetLife Stadium. The masterpiece in question was the goal that made it 3-0 for PSG, scored by Fabian Ruiz.

What gave many people "goosebumps" was not the Spanish midfielder's shot in the penalty area, but the way PSG coordinated at a high level, starting from goalkeeper Donnarumma until the ball reached Fabian Ruiz's feet.

PSG's lightning-fast combination deserves to be included in football textbooks (Photo: The Athletic).

Let me rewind this goal in words. Donnarumma passed the ball out wide to Hakimi. Vitinha ran into space, attracting the Real Madrid player, creating space for Hakimi to pass to Doue. The young striker passed the ball to Hakimi who ran up. The Moroccan star exchanged a pass with Dembele, before passing the ball into the box for Fabian Ruiz to finish.

What’s impressive is that all this happened in… one touch. From Donnarumma’s start to Fabian Ruiz’s goal, it all happened in less than 15 seconds.

It was a series of coordinated moves worthy of being recorded in football textbooks. However, for PSG's stars, such masterpieces are performed as regularly and instinctively as eating and drinking water every day.

PSG's similar combination against Real Madrid, 8 minutes before the goal (Photo: The Athletic).

In fact, Real Madrid were not left unwarned. Just 8 minutes before Fabian Ruiz scored, they faced a similar combination (but failed). Or before that, Bayern Munich also "tasted" this specialty of the Paris team.

At least, until the FIFA Club World Cup final, no team has been able to neutralize this unique move of PSG. If in martial arts, the three factors of speed, strength, and accuracy are put first, PSG has applied this very well to football.

PSG repeatedly performed this type of coordination against Bayern Munich (Photo: The Athletic).

It can be said that Coach Luis Enrique has created a real “monster”, with the characteristics of modern football, which is to focus on the collective element, instead of depending on any individual. All move into a solid block, very difficult to break. The catalyst in that collective is the fiery spirit.

Just look at how PSG reacted to the kick-off (or half). Normally, teams would have passed the ball back to start the attack. But PSG gave the ball to Vitinha and kicked it out of bounds. From the opponent’s throw-in, PSG’s pressing style began to be deployed. Just that detail alone is enough to show how enthusiastic PSG was.

PSG are not only fast in attack, but in defense, the speed of winning the ball back is also incredibly fast. The situation below is a typical example. From the moment Mbappe received the ball, just 4 seconds later, 7 PSG players joined in covering behind. Vinicius could not make a direct pass. Instead, he chose to pass the ball out wide (while Kvaratskhelia managed to retreat to close in on central midfielder Valverde).

It only took PSG 4 seconds to fully arrange the defense (Photo: The Athletic).

Similarly, in the front line, the pressing moves of Dembele and his teammates were also lightning fast. The time for the opponent to react was very little. This led to Raul Asencio and Rudiger of Real Madrid making consecutive mistakes at the beginning of the match.

With PSG's defensive style, it's hard for opponents to create breakthroughs if they're not quick enough. That explains why coach Luis Enrique's team has only conceded one goal since the start of the tournament.

PSG's pressing situations on the front line also happened in a flash (Photo: The Athletic).

It is safe to say that PSG are the best team in Europe at the moment. One thing they have in common with their matches against Brest, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Arsenal, Inter Milan (Champions League knockout round), Atletico Madrid, Inter Miami, Real Madrid (FIFA Club World Cup) is that they have all scored at least one goal in the first 20 minutes.

PSG's motto is not to give the opponent time to react and arrange the system. And then, when they have an early lead, everything will be programmed the way coach Luis Enrique and his team want.

PSG have a habit of scoring before the 20th minute. These are the 9 matches they successfully took the lead against their opponents (Photo: Opta).

Chelsea do not want to accept fate

PSG is really a "bogeyman" for English teams. On the journey to win the Champions League, the Paris team has successively defeated Man City, Arsenal, Aston Villa and Liverpool. That is why many people feel worried about Chelsea's fate in the FIFA Club World Cup final.

In fact, Chelsea did not face many obstacles on their way to the final. After passing the group stage (losing to Flamengo), coach Enzo Maresca's team only faced Benfica, Palmeiras and Fluminense. The Blues' two main opponents in this group, Inter Milan and Man City, lost in the round of 16.

Chelsea do not want to play defensively against PSG (Photo: Getty).

That helps Chelsea "win without a fight". But the disadvantage is that the London team has not been trained through big battles like PSG. Last season, The Blues also did not encounter too many obstacles when winning the Europa Conference League. They even used a reserve team for most of the tournament.

Meanwhile, PSG have faced most of the strongest teams in Europe at this time. But on the other hand, Chelsea are an unknown and can completely create surprises for their opponents.

Before the match, coach Enzo Maresca did not hesitate to admit that PSG is the strongest team in the world and he will play the "chess game" of his life. The Italian strategist said: "PSG is the strongest team in Europe as well as the world. But every match is different.

I really like playing chess and watching chess. I feel that football is like a game of chess, when the opponent makes a move, you have to react accordingly. And I think this match will be like a game of chess. It will definitely be a difficult match, but every match is difficult. Fluminense beat Inter, Al Hilal beat Man City and Botafogo also beat PSG."

In fact, Chelsea also saw PSG's most powerful weapon as their pressing ability as well as lightning-fast combinations. Defender Levi Colwill did not hesitate to express: "You have to respect the way they press, but we will not completely change our style of play just for them. We reached the final thanks to our style. Why change?".

Chelsea's new signing Joao Pedro (left) made an impressive debut with a double against Fluminense (Photo: Getty).

“Park the bus” is pretty much how many pundits will advise Chelsea in the FIFA Club World Cup final. It would be a mistake to get caught up in the pressing vortex with PSG. However, Maresca does not want to be a passive person. He wants Chelsea to be themselves, regardless of the opponent.

There were quite a few questions swirling around Maresca’s head before the game. Would central midfield duo Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo be able to contain the versatile Joao Neves, Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz? How would they counter Hakimi and Nuno Mendes’s high-pressing runs? Or what would Chelsea’s defence do if they were to face PSG’s pressing style?

Up to this point, people have not found a specific formula to counter PSG. However, Chelsea also has its own strengths. They have Cole Palmer with good mutation ability. Chelsea also owns a dangerous winger, Pedro Neto. Newcomer Joao Pedro just had a great debut when contributing a double against Fluminense. In addition, the central midfielder pair Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo also had a great tournament.

At the FIFA technical meeting on July 10, Portugal coach Roberto Martinez said the best way to stop PSG is to mark the whole field, taking advantage of the gaps when Hakimi and Nuno Mendes move up. The problem is, the pressing system must be perfect because PSG do not always show weaknesses and they often react very quickly.

Anyway, it's all just theory. Just look at how Chelsea perform on the pitch to judge. Coach Luis Enrique also understands that no style of play lasts forever: "Opponents will eventually understand you and find ways to counter you. There is no magic wand. You have to constantly change and develop."

Can Chelsea stop the "monster" PSG or will they become the next victim of this team?

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/chung-ket-fifa-club-world-cup-con-quai-vat-hung-bao-va-ke-khong-cam-chiu-20250713011651622.htm