Image reproduced from Yahoo! 奇摩新聞

Sixteen-year-old Brazilian rising star Willian Estêvão is aiming for his future club Chelsea. This Saturday, Brazilian powerhouse Palmeiras will face the English Premier League giant Chelsea at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. According to simulations by the Opta supercomputer, Chelsea is seen as the absolute favorite with a 74.8% chance to advance, as well as a 26.8% chance of winning this tournament.

The two teams previously met in the 2021 Club World Cup final, where Chelsea narrowly won 2-1 after extra time. However, Palmeiras has shown strong strength in this tournament, having secured 10 clean sheets in their last 14 matches. Notably, they have defeated European opponents three times in this tournament, surpassing their previous record of two defeats.

For Chelsea, Portuguese winger Pedro Neto is in fantastic form, but he is uncertain about participating due to the recent passing of close friend Jota. Key midfielder Moisés Caicedo is suspended due to accumulated yellow cards, while new signing João Pedro is expected to make his debut in this match after joining for £60 million from Brighton. Notably, Palmeiras captain Gustavo Gómez and left-back Joaquín Piquerez will miss the match due to disciplinary issues.

Rising star Willian has been the focus, having contributed eight shots and eight chance creations within 16 attacking sequences in this tournament, leading his team in both categories. Opta's match predictions indicate that Chelsea has a 64.8% chance of winning in regular time, with an overall qualification chance at 74.8%. Palmeiras’ probability of winning in regular time stands at just 15.3%, and even considering extra time and penalties, their advance chances remain at only 25.2%. Following the exits of Manchester City and Inter Milan, Chelsea's path to the championship is getting even more promising.