Chelsea owner Todd Boehly praised the club for their ‘special victory’ as he spoke out on their Club World Cup win for the first time.
He also thanked fans for ‘sticking’ with the side and claimed ‘no one gave us a chance to beat PSG’ while adding that the Blues are a ‘force to be reckoned with’ ahead of the new Premier League season.
Chelsea dominated the Champions League winners, securing a hugely impressive 3-0 win at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey courtesy of Cole Palmer and Joao Pedro, to become world champions.
They will receive around £90million from the tournament and will be able to wear a golden ‘World Champions’ badge on their kits for the next four years.
The victory was the second trophy they have won since Boehly and Clearlake Capital bought the club for £4.25billion in 2022 and came just weeks after their Europa Conference League success.
Speaking to talkSPORT after the victory, Boehly warned other teams not to underestimate Chelsea and lavished praise on manager Enzo Maresca.
Chelsea beat PSG 3-0 at the MetLife Stadium to win the first ever revamped Club World Cup
Cole Palmer scored a first-half brace while £60m Joao Pedro added a third before the break
Todd Boehly praised the club for their ‘special victory’ after their stunning Club World Cup win
‘Well, we couldn’t have wished for a better outcome for our boys, who have done such good work and trained so hard, really came together in America under Enzo’s leadership and his direction,’ he said.
‘No one gave us a chance to beat PSG, and the boys really thrived and grew on that. Watching them come together over the last couple of weeks in America has been very special.
He added: ‘We’re just so thrilled, and thank you for sticking with us. We’re really excited about what the future holds.’
‘We always knew that, whatever happens on any given day. The odds that we thought we had and were able to round out with a piece or two…
‘The boys, really understanding what Enzo’s been doing. We’re big believers, we knew all along in the value of the project’.
The American said that the tournament was ‘surreal’ and ‘hard to all digest’.
‘But again, I think the thing that just made the day was just how well the boys played.
‘They really had nothing to lose and they put it out there, they were so organised and so methodical, and the plan that Enzo laid out was so well-done.
‘So the combination of the planning and the execution couldn’t have made me more proud.’
The Club World Cup victory was Boehly’s second trophy at Chelsea after buying them in 2022
Chelsea’s stars will now be given three weeks off before they begin pre-season in early August
They have earned around £90m and will be able to wear a ‘World Champions’ golden badge
Speaking about next season, Boehly said: ‘I think the boys have shown that they are a force to be reckoned with, and I think that’s what we were hoping for.’
Chelsea players have earned a well deserved rest and will be given three weeks off before returning to pre-season.
They have friendly fixtures against Bayer Leverkusen and AC Milan before beginning their Premier League campaign against Crystal Palace on 17 August.
The Blues will also make their return to the Champions League after three seasons.
And defender Levi Colwill has predicted that they will compete domestically and in Europe after their latest trophy.
‘I said at the start of this tournament that our plan is to win it and people looked at me as if I was crazy. So I’m going to say the exact same thing now going into the Premier League and Champions League,’ he said.
‘This is the biggest trophy I’ve ever won. I think the Club World Cup will be bigger than the Champions League and we were the first team to win it.
‘It was a statement victory and, in the future, if we keep winning trophies then everyone will give us the love that we deserve.
