Cole Palmer netted two goals and provided an assist as Chelsea surprised Paris Saint-Germain in the FIFA Club World Cup final on Sunday, defeating the European champions 3-0 at MetLife Stadium to become the inaugural winners of FIFA’s new tournament.
PSG entered the match as favorites, having recently won the UEFA Champions League and decisively beaten Real Madrid 4-0 in the semifinals.
However, unlike their semifinal where they led 3-0 at one point, this time PSG found themselves trailing 3-0 by halftime.
With Donald Trump in attendance Palmer opened the scoring midway through the first half and added a second goal around the 30-minute mark, before exploiting poor defending to assist Joao Pedro for the third goal just before the break.
PSG’s woes were compounded when Joao Neves received a red card after a VAR review for pulling Marc Cucurella’s hair off the ball with just four minutes remaining.
The outcome was unexpected, as Chelsea concluded a long yet remarkable season, becoming the first-ever champions of the 32-team Club World Cup, having also secured the UEFA Conference League title and finishing fourth in the Premier League.
They will take home approximately $125 million in prize money, making the prospect of a shortened summer break before the next season seem worthwhile.
On the other hand, PSG, who also stand to gain similar financial rewards, will feel genuine disappointment at missing the chance to add this title to their Champions League victory and domestic league and cup double.
Nonetheless, Luis Enrique’s squad had their primary focus on conquering Europe this season, and they now have a month to reflect on this defeat before facing Tottenham Hotspur in the UEFA Super Cup.
The atmosphere at MetLife Stadium was electric, with the Manhattan skyline as a backdrop and President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump among the 81,118 attendees.
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The event even featured the first-ever halftime show at a FIFA tournament, giving the final a Super Bowl-like vibe at the home of NFL teams, the New York Giants and New York Jets.
In terms of the match, for the second time in six weeks, PSG found themselves in a final that quickly became one-sided.
While they had achieved a historic 5-0 victory over Inter Milan in the Champions League final, they were overwhelmed by Chelsea on another hot day.
Palmer nearly put Chelsea ahead within the first 10 minutes, and PSG had a chance to score but Desire Doue opted to pass to Achraf Hakimi instead of shooting, allowing Cucurella to block the attempt.
Chelsea finally broke the deadlock in the 22nd minute when Malo Gusto outmaneuvered Nuno Mendes on the right, but his shot was blocked by Lucas Beraldo, the ball then came back.