Preview: Paris Saint-Germain face Flamengo in Intercontinental Cup showdown
Paris Saint-Germain will make their FIFA Intercontinental Cup debut as they take on South American champions Flamengo in the final.
By Neel Shelat
PSG’s second shot at an intercontinental trophy
Following their first-ever UEFA Champions League triumph, Paris Saint-Germain have featured in two FIFA competitions this year. The first was the inaugural edition of the Club World Cup, in which they finished as runners-up after losing the final to Chelsea.
Now, the Intercontinental Cup – the successor to the old Club World Cup played just by the winners of each federation’s premier club cup competition – will afford them a second opportunity to become world champions of some sort. The new format of the competition grants the European entrants a direct spot in the final, so this will be PSG’s only game of the tournament in Qatar.
Flamengo looking to cap off a fantastic year
Brazilian giants Flamengo will be fighting for their fifth trophy of the year to cap off one of the most successful seasons in their history.
Mengão started off with a couple of relatively smaller titles in the Supercopa and Campeonato Carioca, their state championship. As the season heated up, they found themselves competing on all fronts besides going on a tour of the United States for the Club World Cup, in which they advanced to the knockouts. They fell short in the Brazilian cup, but went the distance in both the league and Copa Libertadores to lift their fourth continental crown and second such double.
Flamengo had enjoyed a similarly trophy-laden season in 2019 when they also got to the Club World Cup final in Doha, but then lost out to Liverpool in extra time. They will be hoping to go one better this time around and lift their second intercontinental title.
Will fatigue catch up with Flamengo?
Although Paris Saint-Germain have had UEFA Champions League commitments and are not leading the way in Ligue 1 at the moment, they have been able to take things relatively easy and regularly rest their star players so far this season. Flamengo, on the other hand, have had no such luxuries as they are in the busiest and most stressful part of their season.
This will be Filipe Luís’ side’s 10th match in the last month as they have been involved in a frantic end to the league season, the Copa Libertadores final, and two rounds of the Intercontinental Cup over the last week.
Historical record firmly favouring PSG
The old Intercontinental Cup – which ran from 1960 to 2004 and pitted the European and South American champions against each other in a two-legged decider – was an incredibly evenly-matched affair. There was almost nothing to separate the two confederations in the end, as the CONMEBOL sides edged it 23-22.
The subsequent Club World Cup, though, very quickly became a one-sided affair. Brazilian sides did win the first three editions of the tournament, but since 2007, Corinthians in 2012 are the only outlier in an otherwise spotless record for the UEFA representatives.
Prediction
Flamengo are quite deservedly the best team in South America as they have a collection of experienced internationals and are well-coached by a relatively young but already vastly experienced Luís, who will surely be a wanted man after his stellar 2025, but PSG have to be considered clear favourites.
The Parisians will only be without Achraf Hakimi, so a near-full-strength XI should get them over the line comfortably enough.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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