Chelsea player could play against his own team at Club World Cup due to bizarre loophole
Chelsea could see one of their own players play against them at the FIFA Club World Cup.
Enzo Maresca’s side are one of the 32 teams set to compete in the tournament, which will take place in the US between June 15 and July 13, 2025.
The newly formatted competition will see the most successful clubs from six international confederations: AFC, CAF, Concacaf, CONMEBOL, OFC and UEFA.
The clubs will find out their opponents during Thursday’s draw, which will take place in Miami, USA.
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The European teams involved are Chelsea, Real Madrid, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, PSG, Inter Milan, Porto, Benfica, Borussia Dortmund, Juventus, Atletico Madrid and FC Salzburg - who all qualify through the ‘UEFA ranking pathway’ based on their performances between 2021 and 2024.
The new-style competition has already come under fire due to the fact it will mean there are just five weeks between the tournament’s final (July 13) and the opening day of the 2025-26 Premier League season (August 16).
Man City boss Pep Guardiola even went as far as expressing how he wants to the season to be pushed back.
"The Premier League has not allowed us to postpone the first two games for our recovery," said Guardiola in October [via BBC Sport].
"Thank you so much.
"I think the club asked the league to postpone one or two or three weeks so we can have a holiday after the [Club] World Cup, but it is absolutely not allowed. The Premier League say yes to us? No. Absolutely not."
However, Maresca could be in for an even bigger headache as one of his players could play against the Italian’s Chelsea side.
The Premier League side will be in pot one during Thursday’s draw, meaning they can draw Palmeiras, River Plate, Flamengo or Fluminense.
But, if they are paired with Brazilian side Palmeiras, they may face Estêvão.
The 17-year-old forward was announced as a Chelsea player in June 2024 but cannot link up with his new teammates until his 18th birthday - in April.
However, according to GiveMeSport journalist Ben Jacobs, the Brazilian side "expect him to play for them" at the tournament.
Jacobs also suggested that an ‘exceptional window’ could in theory allow Estêvão to be in Maresca's squad instead.
He added: "Sources within the Brazilian club insist this was pre-agreed as part of the move.
"The June 1-10 window, which The FA would have to take up, was not known at the time of the deal."
Of course, Chelsea fans will no doubt be excited at his arrival, with the young forward previously being compared to Lionel Messi and Neymar due to his similar playing style.
He has even been dubbed 'Messinho'.
"Estevao is the best player to have emerged from Brazilian football since Neymar," the head of Palmeiras' academy, Joao Paulo Sampaio, told BBC Sport in June 2024.
"You watch him and you fall in love."
Topics: Chelsea, FIFA Club World Cup, Enzo Maresca, Premier League, Lionel Messi
Luke Davies