The first edition of the FIFA Club World Cup under the new format was an absolute success! Despite having many doubts cast upon it, we ended having a stellar tournament where Chelsea won the trophy. Cole Palmer, at 23 years old, was key for the Blues. How does he compare to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo at his age?
Palmer has been one of the best prospects in the world for a couple of years and he is now blossoming into the superstar he was destined to be. At his age, Cristiano Ronaldo had won one Club World Cup, meaning the Chelsea star is aligned with the Portuguese ace.
As for Messi, he won one before turning 23 as well. Palmer has a bragging right over Messi when it comes to each’s performance on the final, though. Palmer scored a brace against PSG, while Messi scored once vs. Estudiantes in 2009.
There are still lots to do to reach Messi and Ronaldo’s level
Now, even if Palmer is on a great upwards trayectory that puts him alongside two of soccer’s biggest legends ever, there is still plenty to go. In the Club World Cup department alone, Messi won three (2009, 2011, and 2015), and Ronaldo four (2008, 2014, 2016, and 2017). He is two shy of the Argentine and three of the Portuguese.
Lionel Messi #10 of Inter Miami CF and Cristiano Ronaldo #7 of Al Nassr.
Palmer also faces another roadblock in order to reach both legends’ heights. Before, it was a smaller tournament, meaning less teams to beat and it was a yearly tournament. Now, under the new format, it’s 32 teams and it will be played every four years. This means that, if Palmer wants to be on par with Ronaldo, he needs to win every Club World Cup until 2037. Way easier said than done.
see also
FIFA Club World Cup 2025: A surprising twist that could signal a challenging future for the USA
Chelsea are a finals machine
While Cole Palmer was a key player to win the tournament, especially in the final, we can’t ignore Chelsea’s DNA. As an example, Chelsea have won 7 out of their 8 European finals. In the Club World Cup, they have won 2 out of 3.
The Blues are a team that know how to play these games. In fact, they just need to reach the game, it doesn’t matter how good they’re playing. In most of their finals, they’ve been the underdogs, yet they still come out on top.
