Has the Club World Cup Taught Supporters Anything New About Chelsea? | OneFootball

Chelsea lifted the Club World Cup in surreal circumstances at the end of a marathon season, but does that triumph really show a team ready to challenge Liverpool and Manchester City

It has been an unusual month in America for the Club World Cup, which fittingly ended with a bemused-looking Reece James waiting to lift the winners’ prize during a bizarre trophy presentation after beating Paris Saint-Germain 3–0.

That was probably the Club World Cup in a nutshell — a bit out of place, running behind schedule and with no one too sure how seriously to take it. Even so, does this mean Chelsea are genuine title contenders this season and has the tournament in the United States revealed anything new about the Blues?

The Rush to See the Club World Cup Champions

Without doubt, the rest of the footballing world will be craning their necks at Stamford Bridge this season to see if this Club World Cup success translates into a Premier League title challenge. For fans, getting tickets will be close to impossible with Enzo Maresca’s side now one of the favourites at 8/1 to win the league with interest surging after their triumph.

However, if you’re looking to see the Blues next season, there is some good news. Tickets do still remain at Hellotickets, a platform that makes it far easier to grab one of the limited seats left once season ticket holders and members have had their pick.

This is a global platform built to make attending matches like these far simpler. On their Chelsea page, you can see the full 2025–26 fixture list, check live availability for both home and away games and book directly without having to battle through different club websites. It’s designed with travelling supporters and regular match?goers in mind, meaning you can lock in your place for huge fixtures — from nights under the lights at Stamford Bridge to those tough away trips — before allocations disappear.

So, while doors might open that were previously closed in terms of tickets, will the lucky few who get in see anything truly new when Chelsea take the pitch next season?

Maresca’s Unmistakable Blueprint on Display

Maresca tends to set his sides up in what looks like a 4?2?3?1 or a 4?3?3 on paper, but when his teams start building from the back, the shape often morphs into something closer to a 3?2?5. To make that happen, one of the full?backs tucks inside alongside the centre?backs, while the other pushes higher to provide width, giving the team an extra man in the first phase of possession.

That blueprint was evident during Chelsea’s time in the States. There was no great tactical surprise on show — Maresca stuck with his favoured framework, leaning heavily on Cole Palmer’s movement between the lines and creative freedom. It felt less like a revolution and more like a continuation of ideas he trusts, rather than a glimpse of something dramatically different for the season ahead.

Looking Ahead after a Summer of Success

However, as far as playing personnel go, the answer is yes. The Blues have already signed Liam Delap, Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens. By the time kick?off comes against Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on Sunday, August 17th, you can expect to see a few more names added to that list.

Still, you might say, even objectively speaking, that Maresca already has an embarrassment of riches capable of winning the Premier League: Chelsea have spent over £1?billion on transfers since Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital took control in 2022 and have even been accused of stockpiling players.

To that end, it’s tempting to think that level of investment is finally starting to turn into silverware after Chelsea lifted the Conference League in May and, as touched on, the Club World Cup in July. However, there are caveats to those wins, which suggest that Chelsea’s real battle this season will be to secure a top?four finish rather than to stand on the summit of the Premier League next May.

Admittedly, winning the Club World Cup required having to topple better opponents than the Conference League, but only just, as the road to the trophy included LAFC, Flamengo, ES Tunis, Benfica, Palmeiras, Fluminense and PSG.

Of course, the Blues still deserve immense credit for dismantling a Luis Enrique side which, only seven weeks prior, tore apart Inter Milan in the Champions League final.

A Sign of Things to Come or a False Dawn?

Chelsea’s Club World Cup victory was deserved but the tournament itself offered few surprises tactically and little evidence that Maresca has reinvented this side. The patterns of play looked familiar and the reliance on Palmer remained.

That is why the real question is whether they can sustain those standards over 38 games and go toe to toe with defending champions Liverpool and Manchester City in a Premier League title race.

For now, the Club World Cup feels more like an encouraging prelude than proof of what is to come, and most in football will be glad to put that sideshow behind them as the real competitions begin.