Palmeiras stopped at Chelsea in an attempt to achieve their big dream, winning the World Cup. The alviverde team toughened the game against the English team and took it to extra time, on Saturday night (12) by the United Arab Emirates, but the competition decision ended like the previous eight: victory of the European.
The Champions League champion reached the trophy with a 2-1 triumph. In the opening 90 minutes, Lukaku opened the scoring with a header, and Raphael Veiga equalized for the Brazilian team in a foolish penalty by Thiago Silva. Then it was Luan’s turn to take a penalty. Havertz set the score at the Mohammed Bin Hayed Stadium, in Abu Dhabi, at 12 minutes into the second extra time.
It was the first world title for Chelsea, who had failed in their previous attempt in 2012, when they lost 1-0 in the final to Corinthians. That was the last time a non-European won the cup. Since then, they have beaten Bayern (twice), Real Madrid (four times), Barcelona and Liverpool.
The result follows the mockery that accompanies the Palmeiras with each failure in the search for the intercontinental trophy. Many of them consider glory in the 1951 Copa Rio an achievement of the greatest magnitude, something that never stopped rivals from making fun, pointing out that the club from the west side of São Paulo does not have a World Cup.
In recent years, Corinthians, São Paulo, Santos and even non-São Paulo rivals, such as Flamenguistas, have often chanted the verses: “Palmeiras doesn’t have a World Cup, Palmeiras doesn’t have a World Cup, there’s no Cup, there’s no World Cup”. It was an adaptation of an old song by Dorival Caymmi that became irritating to white ears.
The part of Copinha was buried last month, with the unprecedented victory in the traditional Copa São Paulo for juniors. There was a party in São Paulo on January 25th, with the expectation that all the verses of the musical joke would be obsolete in a short time. That was not what happened in the United Arab Emirates, despite the good presence of Alviverde in the stands.
Previously, in 1999, the walk towards the trophy was interrupted in a failure of the idol Marcos against the English Manchester United. At the 2020 World Cup in Qatar, the team recorded the worst campaign by a South American in the competition, with losses to Mexican Tigres and Egyptian Al Ahly.
The 2021 tournament, held in 2022 due to calendar delays during the Covid-19 pandemic, even started well for Palmeiras. The team easily overcame Al Ahly, the tormentor of the previous year, but could not complete the most complicated step, overthrowing the champions of the Champions League.
It was not an easy victory for Chelsea, who found an opponent well positioned defensively. Coach Abel Ferreira set up an individual marking scheme for several of the English team’s players, who had a hard time breaking this barrier of athletes wearing white.
Ron, who had been the more advanced player, became almost a right back. He accompanied left winger Hudson-Odoi all the time. On the other side, Gustavo Scarpa did the same with Azpilicueta. Mount (later Pulisic) was Piquerez’s man. Marcos Rocha was hunting Havertz. In the middle, Zé Rafael and Danilo laid siege to Kanté and Kovacic.
The striker Lukaku was almost always marked by Luan, who managed well, with Gómez in the back. Thus, the only players of the European champion who were free to work were the trio of defenders. Christensen, Thiago Silva and Rudiger advanced and played in the offensive midfield.
It was part of Palmeiras’ trap, which was set up to counterattack. The problem was that the speed man, Ron, started from a very deep position. Raphael Veiga and Dudu were the most advanced athletes and they don’t have the same speed. Even so, opportunities appeared in the first half.
The best one appeared in the 27th minute, in a counterattack in which Zé Rafael was launched, fought in the half-moon with two defenders and rolled to Dudu, who entered free on the left. Instead of hitting first, which was a clear possibility, he tried to drive the ball, missed the stride, and threw an off-balance shot.
At the beginning of the final stage, Chelsea finally managed to find spaces, especially on the left side. It was there that Hudson-Odoi received a free kick and crossed at nine. Lukaku won Luan’s first and headed into Weverton’s right corner.
Abel reacted by putting Jailson in place of Zé Rafael, giving strength to the midfield. Palmeiras had a moment of instability in which they could have taken the second, but they were reborn in a high ball in the area. Thiago Silva, as he has done other times in his career, inexplicably fought for the top using his hand.
Called to watch the video, the Australian referee Chris Beath whistled a penalty, converted by Raphael Veiga at 19. The moment turned. Hearing the stands shouting that “Palmeiras is the team of the comeback”, the alviverdes began to bother the British team, which, however, remained dangerous: Havertz and Pulisic narrowly missed.
The tie persisted until overtime. Chelsea, who already showed fatigue, managed to survive with some substitutions. He had the ball, however, in his only clearest opportunity of the first extra time, there was an offside position. The crossbar was hit, but, in case of a ball in the net, the bid would have been annulled by the electronic system for marking the irregular position.
The dispute went to penalties until a corner for the English in which the ball stayed alive in the area. Luan blocked Azpilicueta’s kick with his arm. Once again, the referee was called to the video to whistle the penalty. Havertz converted him, at 12 of the second stage of extra time.
The triumph, if not treated as a priority by Chelsea, boosts Thomas Tuchel’s morale. After leading Paris Saint-Germain to the Champions League final, the German took over the London team and triumphed in the main European tournament without being considered a favorite, beating Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City in the decision.
The coach, who only had domestic glories under his belt, in Germany and France, gained new prestige with the international triumph. After that, he won the European Supercup and now, at 48, celebrates winning the World Cup.
He even looked down on the tournament, saying in December that he didn’t even think about it. In the United Arab Emirates, however, he was very excited about his team’s goals and the title. He arrived in Abu Dhabi just on the eve of the decision, recovered from Covid-19.
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