Portaluppi eyeing Club World Cup history with 'ugly ducklings' Fluminense

Renato Portaluppi described his Fluminense team as the "ugly ducklings" of the Club World Cup, but believes they can make history by winning the tournament. 

Portaluppi is preparing his players for their semi-final against Chelsea at MetLife Stadium on Tuesday, in what has been a fine run to the last four by the Brazilian side. 

Fluminense finished second behind Borussia Dortmund in Group F, going on to knock out Lionel Messi's Inter Miami and Al-Hilal to reach this stage of the competition. 

Indeed, their 2-1 win over Al-Hilal in the quarter-final extended their unbeaten run in all competitions to 11 matches (W8 D3), but they face a stern test to keep that streak going. 

Fluminense's only previous Club World Cup match against English opposition was a 4-0 loss to Manchester City in the 2023 final.

That was the largest margin of defeat ever by a South American team in the tournament's history, along with a 4-0 loss for Santos against Barcelona in the 2011 final.

But Portaluppi insisted that the club's previous failures at the Club World Cup counted for nothing, while urging his players to believe they can beat Enzo Maresca's side. 

"It is a privilege to be coaching this team, and we are here to make history," said Portaluppi.

"We need to believe. We are up against powerful opponents with a financial advantage, but football is decided on the pitch so we need to keep that in mind."

Should Fluminense emerge victorious, they will face either Paris Saint-Germain or Real Madrid in Sunday's final in East Rutherford. 

Portaluppi, however, cited the financial disadvantage his team face compared to those left in the tournament. 

When looking at Chelsea, they have welcomed seven new faces so far this summer, including the big-money arrivals of Jamie Gittens, Joao Pedro and Liam Delap. 

But Portaluppi believes his side can still compete with Chelsea and go on to win the competition. 

"We had to be really competent to get this far and, since the beginning, I have told the team this is a huge opportunity for us," Portaluppi added. 

"We are facing teams who are superior to us, and we know if we take our eyes off the ball we will be going home without the title.

"I said we were the ugly ducklings in financial terms because that is the reality.

"Fluminense's finances do not make 10 per cent of those of the other clubs, but that doesn't mean we can't get to the final or even win the Club World Cup."