We all know Paris Saint Germain (PSG) as the best club in the world with the best players. A journalist asked one of the sport analysts who happened to be playing in Chelsea before he retired that which Chelsea player can fit in in PSG first 11? He answered and said, “the only player that can fit in PSG first 11 is Moises Caicedo. This is because he is the most outstanding Chelsea player this last season; and I don't think he can bench Vitinha”.
Why was PSG Defeated in the Club World Cup?It is simple! It is an overconfidence Overconfidence in the sense that they have beaten all the biggest teams in Europe. They have beaten Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, Manchester United, and many more. PSG have beaten most scariest and deadly club in the world, they are not scared of Chelsea. Chelsea football club was like one of the clubs in League 1 that is nothing to PSG.
Underestimation When you look at the Premier League, you will understand that PSG underrated Chelsea. For three years, Chelsea did not qualify to the Champions League; and PSG defeated the best 3 premier League clubs last season- Liverpool, Manchester City, Arsenal, and Aston Villa. Therefore, you cannot expect PSG to prepare very well against Chelsea.
Playing the same pattern of football When you look at it very well, PSG have been using the same pattern to play in this Club World Cup and Champions League. They have been using Nuno Mendes as an inverted player; and that was the reason Chelsea used 2 right back- James and Gusto. James was used to cover Gusto in case he overlapped. James was there to cover Gusto if you watch the match, Enzo Maresca watched PSG matches and understood it. He utilized Nuno Mendes' overlapping to gain advantage over them. He used Cole in a free role which allowed him to float in any direction; he knew Cole Palmer precision and accuracy; he used Cole Palmer in his best position. The best poison for him is the right wing which allows him to cult to the center. We have seen how swift he was when he was used in that position.
He Neutralized PSG attackers and Midfielders He understood how good PSG's attackers and Midfielders were, hence he shocked them. James did not move forward, Caicedo was in the midfield without overlapping and Enzo Fernandez was going forward and moving backward. It was a massive defense and mass attack. I could remember that Cole came, Pedro Neto and Joao Pedro were also defending. Therefore, the midfield was very shocked, and it was not easy for PSG forwards and mildfielders to penetrate. Though PSG had possession, Chelsea players were able to defend themselves from PSG. We all know that Hakimi is inverted 2, i.e. he attacks and also defends. I did not see the impact of Hakimi in the match, even Dembele was totally lost in the match.
I understood reason Enzo Maresca Used James as a the mildfielder The PSG team had Vitinha and João Neves in the midfield; a team that wants to play against PSG should make sure there are two defensive Midfielders. Therefore, Chelsea used two defensive midfielders, and none of them moved to the front.
Enzo Maresca knew his players The best striker for this kind of match is Joao Pedro, and he used him. I believe if it was Nicolas Jackson that got that finishing pass from Cole Palmer, he might miss it or score. It is a 50\50 chance! Though, Jackson would have done the same as Joao Pedro i.e. falling deep to defend, and he would have been a threat to opponent defenders just like Pedro.
Chelsea always underdog In the 2012 champions League, Chelsea was not the best team in the tournament, they defeated Barcelona FC in the semi-final and won the cup in Munich. In 2021, Chelsea was not the best team, they defeated Manchester City in the final, and I'm this year's club world cup, they were not the best team, they defeated PSG 3:0. Paris Saint Germain would have understood and prepared very well against them. They already believed they are the best club in the world; overconfidence and excitement to play Chelsea in the final was all over them because they believed that Chelsea would be a walkover. They believed in the easy victory against Chelsea until 45 minutes of the game they realized that Chelsea wasn't easy to defeat. It was a shock to the coach and entire team. The coach did not believe he would lose the match against Chelsea.
Credit to Canva: Cover photo created by canvas
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