“All of us watching fell for it hook, line and sinker” Pat Nevin on Chelsea star’s moment of ‘supreme intelligence’

 

 

Former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin has applauded Cesar Azpilicueta’s “supreme intelligence” during the Club World Cup final.The Blues defeated Palmeiras 2-1 to win their first trophy in the competition, with Kai Havertz netting the winning strike from the spot in the 117th minute.

 

César Azpilicueta acting like he's going to take the penalty to take the pressure off Kai Havertz 🧠

True leader 💪

(via @frankiegraulund)pic.twitter.com/TH5e9aYVOB

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) February 15, 2022

 

“Maybe you have heard of a player taking the ball at a vital moment in the build-up to a penalty to relieve the pressure exerted on his team-mate, but I haven’t.” said Nevin.

 

“It was a moment of supreme intelligence, psychological knowledge and selfless awareness. Every Palmeiras player and all of us watching fell for it hook, line and sinker. Only Kai Havertz seemed in on it, and he quietly allowed Azpi to take the sledging before calmly taking the ball himself at the last second.” he added.

 

Praising the player for pulling it off in the finals, he said “You should never underestimate the importance of a player who thinks outside the box in that way. I suspect this action will become the ‘done thing’ in these sorts of situations from now on.”

 

He also added, “He may not have been the first to trick the opposition in this way, but the high profile of doing it at the Club World Cup final before Kai slotted in the winner was a game changer, in every sense.”