PALMEIRAS manager Abel Ferreira has heaped criticism on Thomas Tuchel’s Chelsea squad for their lack of English players following the Club World Cup final.
The Blues came out 2-1 winners after extra-time, with Kai Havertz bagging the all important goal.
However, speaking to Eurosport, Ferreira has openly criticised Chelsea after the final.
He said: “I’m not going to go into details of individual qualities of players.
“Do you know how many Englishmen were playing? Do you know why I’m sad sometimes? How many Brazilians played in my team? How many British men played in the other team?
“Food for thought for you.”
Chelsea started Mason Mount and Callum Hudson-Odoi, although Mount was forced off with an injury in the first period.
Trevoh Chalobah was on the bench, although did not feature, with Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Reece James and Ben Chilwell not in the squad due to injuries.
“They played against the Libertadores champions, and how many English men were in the Chelsea team?” Ferreira continued.
“I’m not going to speak about anything else because of the work that we did. I’m sorry that sometimes people don’t understand that we are not on a level playing field.
“I don’t pass the responsibility to anyone else, it’s always with me, but it’s also about competence.”
Despite the criticism, Chelsea will not care as they were crowned Champions of the World with a victory over Ferreira’s Palmeiras side.
The Blues also have the chance to lift the Carabao Cup at the end of the month.
- * Sports Illustrated
