Palmeiras vs Chelsea Prediction: Blues looking good to progress

The Fifa Club World Cup quarter-finals continue as Palmeiras face off against the last English team remaining, Chelsea, at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia (02:00 BST, live on Betfred). In a repeat of the 2022 final which the Premier League outfit won in extra time, these two will do battle again, this time for a place in the semi-finals. 

Below you will find my Palmeiras vs Chelsea predictions featuring team news and match odds.

Team News

This will be a great chance for Estevao Willian to face off against his soon-to-be teammates, as he is joining Chelsea following the completion of the Club World Cup. The 18-year-old wonderkid is the latest in a long line of exciting Stamford Bridge prospects, and it is worth keeping an eye on how his career develops from here. 

Gustavo Gomez and Joaquin Piquerez are both suspended for this one, which means a reshuffle is needed in the back four after a tense win over Botafogo. Mayke and Micael are the two names most likely to come into the XI for Abel Ferreira, having come off the bench late on in the last 16. 

Paulinho scored the winner from the substitutes bench, but then had to be replaced in extra time as he is not fully fit, and set to undergo another surgery once this tournament is done. 

“This is why we brought him,” said the Palmeiras coach following Paulinho’s winner against Fogo. “We knew we couldn’t count on him for more than 30 minutes, and we all know what will happen after this Club World Cup. He’ll undergo another operation. I’ll be very honest: this is why he came. To play 15 minutes and decide games.”

Football Odds

Nicolas Jackson is back from his two-game suspension for Chelsea and new arrival Joao Pedro is now part of the squad, so he could make his debut here. It doesn’t seem entirely fair that they can add a £60m signing to their squad for this competition, but hey, it’s the Club World Cup and anything goes.

Liam Delap should retain his place up front, with Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernandez playing behind him in the Benfica success, however Pedro Neto may not feature after the death of his close friend Diogo Jota. Reece James has managed to stay fit so far and should continue at right-back, with only Wesley Fofana out of action from a fitness perspective for Enzo Maresca. 

That means Levi Colwill will be partnered by Benoit Badiashile or Tosin Adarabioyo, with Marc Cucurella set to continue at left-back. Moises Caicedo is suspended having picked up another yellow against Benfica.

Palmeiras vs Chelsea Odds

Palmeiras are priced at 11/4 to win this game, with Chelsea available as the 11/10 favourites. That gives Maresca’s men an implied win probability of 47% while a draw after 90 minutes is 9/4. 

Over 2.5 goals is 6/5, BTTS is 1/1 and Delap is the favourite to score first at 5/1. Betfred also have plenty of Bet Builders and Price Boosts that you can find on the link above. 

Chelsea to win @ 11/10

I know this is a boring selection, but I think the price makes it worth backing. Palmeiras have fought and scrapped their way to this stage, but they shouldn’t get any further. They’ve drawn three of their four matches at this tournament in 90 minutes, only beating Urawa Reds in normal time, before edging past Botafogo in extra time in their last-16 clash. 

They’ve not looked all that convincing to me, while Chelsea have done well since that shock loss to Flamengo. The defeat has actually worked in their favour, as it’s put them on the easier side of the draw, and their path to the final now looks more than doable, with Al Hilal or Fluminense playing the winner of this tie. 

Chelsea conceded late in the last 16, but managed to put three past Benfica in extra time, and they’ve looked good going forward, with the addition of Joao Pedro an exciting one. They should have enough to beat a Palmeiras side missing two defenders through suspension relatively comfortably. 

Today's Football Fixtures

Pedro Neto to score anytime @ 7/2

Update: Pedro Neto may now miss this game due to the death of his close friend Diogo Jota. 

Neto is the man in form at present for Chelsea. Palmer’s performances appear to be fading slightly this summer, and it has been the Portuguese winger that has stepped up to the plate as a result. He’s scored three goals at the Club World Cup in the three appearances he has made, as he was left out of the final group game success over ES Tunis. 

I’ll always back a man in form to find the net and given the defensive absentees that Palmeiras have, I think they could look far more shaky than normal. Delap seems to occupy defenders slightly more than previous number nines have for Chels, which in turn makes more room for the likes of Neto to flourish. Let’s back him to find the net once again.

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