Chelsea defeated 10-man Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 in the Club World Cup final at MetLife Stadium on Sunday, to become the first winner of the newly expanded tournament.
Cole Palmer scored twice in the first half-hour, and Joao Pedro added a third goal before halftime. A thoroughly defeated PSG saw João Neves sent off late in the game.
Thirty-two teams from around the globe entered the competition, but it concluded with an all-European final. PSG, the reigning Champions League winner, defeated Inter Milan 5-0 in that title match. Chelsea, on the other hand, won the third-tier UEFA Conference League in May.
Parts of the stadium thought Chelsea had scored when Cole Palmer’s curling effort hit the side netting in the eighth minute. Chelsea wouldn’t have wanted that chance to fall to anyone else but Palmer, despite his quiet form in front of goal since the turn of the year.
PSG’s first chance fell to Desire Doue, the player of the match in the Champions League final, but he made a mistake. With the ball at his feet and close to goal, he opted to cut it back for Achraf Hakimi, who would have had a tap-in. Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella intercepted, and the chance was lost.
Palmer didn’t miss from the same spot in the 22nd minute. He had earlier fired wide from a similar spot, but this time, he curled a low shot that ended up inside the right post. Palmer’s superb composure allowed him to thread the shot past the PSG defence and beyond goalkeeper Gianluigi Donarumma.
Palmer struck again in the 30th minute, almost repeating his earlier goal. Palmer received the ball inside the box and curled a low left-footed shot into the bottom corner.
João Pedro made it 3-0 with a delightful flick over goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma in the 43rd minute. Chelsea again exploited PSG’s left defence, with a brilliant through ball by Cole Palmer.
PSG’s woes were compounded when João Neves received a red card in the 83rd minute for pulling Marc Cucurella’s hair.
