As scintillating display from Cole Palmer helped Chelsea cruise past Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 to win the FIFA Club World Cup title on Sunday.
Palmer struck in the 22nd and 30th minutes, while Joao Pedro added a third just before halftime, finishing off a slick pass from Palmer inside the box.
Goalkeeper Robert Sanchez was outstanding, making six crucial saves in his best outing of the tournament.
Chelsea, winners of the 2021 Club World Cup when the tournament featured just eight teams, advanced to the final after hard-fought victories over Portugal’s Benfica and Brazilian sides Palmeiras and Fluminense.
They faced PSG, who were fresh off their maiden UEFA Champions League triumph just six weeks ago.
PSG goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma managed two saves from five shots on target, as the French side—who had conceded just once in their previous six matches of the tournament—struggled defensively.
Frustrations boiled over late in the game, with PSG reduced to 10 men in the 85th minute when Joao Neves was shown a red card following a VAR review for pulling Chelsea defender Marc Cucurella by the hair.
Tensions escalated after the final whistle, with PSG head coach Luis Enrique appearing to grab Joao Pedro by the neck while confronting Chelsea players alongside Donnarumma.
Cucurella also made a vital defensive play in the 16th minute to keep the scoreline level. Fabian Ruiz’s cross to Désiré Doué seemed destined for a scoring chance, but Doué’s attempt at a centering pass was expertly intercepted by Cucurella.
Palmer, who narrowly missed the target with a left-footed strike in the eighth minute, opened the scoring six minutes later.
Malo Gusto intercepted a misplaced header from Nuno Mendes and drove into the box. After a clever dribble, his shot was blocked and rebounded back to him, allowing him to assist Palmer, who slotted home a low left-footed finish into the bottom corner.
Palmer doubled Chelsea’s lead following a long ball from Levi Colwill. He calmly dribbled across the top of the penalty area before firing a nearly identical low shot into the bottom left corner.
In the 43rd minute, Palmer threaded a pass between two defenders to Pedro, who lifted his shot over a diving Donnarumma to make it 3-0.
Sanchez capped off Chelsea’s dominant night with key second-half saves, including a diving stop on Neves’ header in stoppage time and a reflex save to deny Ousmane Dembele from close range.
