After winning the Conference League last month, Chelsea will be aiming to collect more silverware when they travel to the USA for the 32-team Club World Cup.
The Blues won the previous iteration of the competition in 2021, but they have many more obstacles to overcome if they are to win it for the second time.
Enzo Maresca's side are set to compete in a group with Brazilian giants Flamengo, MLS side Los Angeles FC and Tunisian champions Esperance Tunis.
Here, Sports Mole takes a look at Group D in greater depth.
Club World Cup Group D standings
### Team ### G ### P
Flamengo (BRA) 0 0
Esperance de Tunis (TUN) 0 0
Chelsea (ENG) 0 0
Los Angeles FC (USA) 0 0
Club World Cup Group D fixtures
(all times BST)
Matchday 1
Chelsea vs. Los Angeles FC (Monday, June 16 | 8pm)
Flamengo vs. Esperance de Tunis (Tuesday, June 17 | 2am)
Matchday 2
Flamengo vs. Chelsea (Friday, June 20 | 7pm)
Los Angeles FC vs. Esperance de Tunis (Friday, June 20 | 11pm)
Matchday 3
Esperance de Tunis vs. Chelsea (Wednesday, June 25 | 2am)
Los Angeles FC vs. Flamengo (Wednesday, June 25 | 2am)
Club World Cup Group D predictions - who will qualify?
Flamengo manager Filipe Luis on May 21, 2025
Chelsea will be the obvious favourites to finish top of the group, even if they failed in their quest to sign AC Milan's Mike Maignan and Borussia Dortmund's Jamie Gittens in time for the tournament.
The Blues should enter the Club World Cup with plenty of confidence after winning the Conference League and securing Champions League qualification via a fourth-place finish in the Premier League.
Chelsea should be cut above the rest in Group D, and we expect them to ease through to the last eight with maximum points.
While we believe Flamengo will lose to Chelsea, we think the three-time Copa Libertadores winners will pick up enough points from their other two matches to seal second spot in Group D.
As for LAFC, they will just be pleased to be in the tournament after they recently sealed their spot with a 2-1 extra-time win over Club America in a play-in match.
We believe the MLS side will fall short of a top-two spot, but we expect them to finish in third ahead of ES Tunis, even if the Tunisian side will be full of confidence after avoiding defeat in their final 11 games of the 2024-25 season.
Final Group D standings prediction
1. Chelsea
2. Flamengo
3. Los Angeles FC
4. Esperance de Tunis
Who will be the top scorer from Group D?
Chelsea's Cole Palmer celebrates with the Conference League trophy on May 28, 2025
We expect Chelsea to dominate their three matches, and with that in mind, we think the top scorer should come from Maresca's squad.
New signing Liam Delap will be hoping to make a positive impression when he gets the chance to play, although it remains to be seen whether he will start ahead of Nicolas Jackson.
However, rather than one of the two strikers, we think talisman Cole Palmer will top the scoring charts in Group D, especially as he will take any penalties Chelsea get in the tournament.
The England international also finished the 2024-25 campaign as the club's top scorer after netting 15 goals in 37 Premier League appearances.
Giroud to score against his former club
Los Angeles FC striker Olivier Giroud pictured on August 13, 2024
Football loves to throw up some interesting stories, and we think one could be in store for Chelsea's opening group game against LAFC.
The match will see the Blues come up against their former striker Olivier Giroud, who scored 39 goals in 119 appearances during his time at Stamford Bridge.
After leaving European football, Giroud would surely have thought he would never play against one of his former clubs, but LAFC's recent play-in win gives the Frenchman the chance to face off against the Blues.
The 38-year-old is unlikely to start, but we think he could grab a goal against his former employers if he makes a substitute appearance in Atalanta.
The veteran forward will certainly head into the tournament in a confident mood after scoring in his last two MLS appearances.
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