Overview
After Manchester City were eliminated in the round of 16, Chelsea is the only remaining Premier League club in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
Moreover, Man City being eliminated by Al Hilal along with Inter Milan's defeat to Fluminense opened up a great opportunity for Chelsea. In theory, the journey to the final for The Blues will become simpler.
However, it is impossible to predict anything, especially after the performance of the Brazilian teams in this year's tournament. After defeating Inter, Fluminense marked the third victory for Brazilian clubs over European opponents at the FIFA Club World Cup - one more than the number of losses they have suffered (2).
Palmeiras will aim to increase their winning total to 4 when they face Chelsea at Lincoln Financial Stadium in Philadelphia to win a place in the semi-finals.
This will be the second meeting between Palmeiras and Chelsea, as The Blues won the 2021 FIFA Club World Cup final (2-1 after extra time). However, the Brazilian team could be a much more difficult opponent at the moment.
The 1-0 extra-time win over Botafogo was their 10th clean sheet in their last 14 games in all competitions, a run stretching back to 30 April.
Chelsea just need to look back at the group stage to remember how difficult it is for a Brazilian opponent to be defeated. They lost 1-3 to Flamengo despite taking the lead thanks to Pedro Neto.
Neto is one of Chelsea's best players at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. The Portuguese winger entered this match after scoring in 3 consecutive matches. He has now scored just three goals in 30 appearances in all competitions for the Blues.
Moises Caicedo has also impressed in this tournament and led all Chelsea players in the number of possession (20), 12 tackles and wins in one doubles match (22). However, he will be absent from this match after receiving a second yellow card at the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 in a 4-1 win over Benfica.
Another Chelsea player who will be absent is Benoit Badiashile after he was injured in the match against Benfica. However, coach Enzo Maresca will welcome the return of Nicolas Jackson after serving a two-match ban.
Estevan will be the player Chelsea fans are looking forward to in this match. The Brazilian will join Stamford Bridge after this tournament.
Predicting the result
According to the Opta supercomputer, Chelsea are rated much higher in defeating Palmeiras and reaching the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025.
The Blues have a 74.8% chance of doing so - more than any other team in the quarter-finals. Meanwhile, Palmeiras have a 15.3% chance of creating a surprise.
Score prediction: Palmeiras 1-3 Chelsea
The match between Palmeiras and Chelsea takes place at 8:00 a.m. on July 5 (Vietnam time).
