The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup reaches the final and a new winner of the tournament will be crowned in Russia on Sunday night. The final will be contested between Chile and Germany at the Krestovsky Stadium, Saint Petersburg.
This is new territory for both teams, who have never played in the Confederations Cup before in their history. Germany have contested the tournament twice before, with third place being their best finish. This is the first time Chile have been in the competition.
Having won the previous two Copa America tournaments, it should not come as no surprise to see Chile doing well in Russia.
Chile were drawn in Group B along with Germany, Cameroon and Australia. La Roja won their opening match 2-0 against Cameroon and this left them in a good position ahead of the match with the Germans.
Having played out a 1-1 draw with Germany, Chile were also held by Australia, having gone a goal behind. The latter was a poor result but it was enough to see them qualify for the semi-final and a match against Portugal.
With Cristiano Ronaldo in their ranks, this game was being billed as Alexis Sanchez vs Ronaldo but neither player could make the breakthrough for their team. The match went to penalties and it was Chilean goalkeeper Claudio Bravo who came out as the hero, saving three spot kicks to send his team to the final.
Germany, who were also drawn in Group B, started the tournament with an exciting 3-2 win over Australia. The 1-1 draw with Chile left the German’s in a strong position to qualify ahead of the final group game against Cameroon.
Unlike Chile, Germany made no mistake and defeated Cameroon 3-1 to finish top of the group and meet Mexico in the semi-final.
While the Mexicans were not expected to stop Germany from reaching the final, the way they capitulated in the opening exchanges meant the match was over after just 10 minutes. Germany raced into a 2-0 lead and never looked back, winning the game 4-1.
Chile will be tempted to make changes following their long semi-final against Portugal but are likely to stick to the same starting XI. This will see Arturo Vidal playing further forward than usual, in support of Alexis Sanchez and Eduardo Vargas.
Germany will also stick to the same starting XI from their semi-final victory. Timo Werner will lead the line, with Lars Stindl and Julian Draxler playing behind the striker in a 3-4-2-1 formation.
Chile have reached the final by winning only one of their four matches in the 2017 Confederations Cup. This suggests, if they are to win the trophy, they will do so by taking the match into extra-time and possibly penalties.
However, having faced 120 minutes of football in the semi-final, Chile may not have it in them to play longer than 90 minutes. If the match is decided inside 90 minutes, expect Germany to come out on top and win the 2017 Confederations Cup, with both teams scoring.