Chelsea boss, Enzo Maresca, has detailed the tactical blueprint that saw his side dismantle Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 in the final of the FIFA Club World Cup on Sunday.
The Blues delivered a stunning first-half performance, surging into a commanding lead courtesy of a Cole Palmer brace and a goal from Joao Pedro, effectively sealing the win before the break.
PSG’s hopes of a comeback were further dashed late on when Joao Neves was sent off, reducing them to 10 men.
In his post-match press conference, Maresca shed light on how Chelsea identified and exploited gaps in PSG’s setup.
“There are three midfielders, two of them were in charge of Reece [James] and Moi [Caicedo] this point, and Vitinha was in charge of Enzo [Fernandez]. Analysing them, we saw that was a good opportunity to exploit that space, and we scored a goal on that side,” he explained.
“It was just a game plan, as we said many times, we tried to use different game plans, and we tried to help the players to be in a position where they can give everything. Today, it worked quite well.
“But overall, I think, as I just said, it has been the effort from all the team, all the players, and I’m very happy, especially for them, because they deserve this moment.”
Despite PSG’s reputation for high pressing, Chelsea’s aggressive start nullified their rhythm and turned the game in their favour.
“We tried to plan the game thinking that it was going to go well and that things were going to go well. We had the same thought today. The idea was to go man-to-man. I think PSG are so good that if you give them time, they are going to struggle,” Maresca noted.
“In my personal opinion, you have to press them very intense. I think in the first 10 minutes, we were able to do it. In our ideal world, we have to do that for 90 minutes, 95, but we knew that because of the weather conditions, it was not possible to do it for a long time. But we tried to be very aggressive and not give them time.”
Reflecting on the scoreline at the interval, Maresca admitted even he was taken aback by the dominant display.
“I want to say again that I have a lot of respect for Paris Saint-Germain, I respect their coach, but I planned the game to win it. Now, if it’s Paris Saint-Germain or another team, what we try to do is help the players so that we can win the game. If you tell me, 3-0 in the first half, I tell you, I didn’t expect 3-0,” he said.
“But I did expect a game where the team would fight, and we are here for that. And I think that the team we have can compete against the team of this world.”
According to the Italian tactician, Chelsea laid down their intentions early and set the tone for the entire match.
“The message was quite clear. I think we won the game in the first 10 minutes, and the message before the game was to let them understand that we are here to win the game,” Maresca added. “I think the first 10 minutes, the team was there to show that we were there to win the game. That set the tone of the game, and then, again, the quality of the players, the game plan, the experience, everything has to be good.”
Chelsea’s emphatic victory secured them global silverware and offered a clear glimpse into the tactical discipline Maresca has instilled in the squad.
