Chelsea beat Paris Saint-Germain in hugely convincing fashion to win the FIFA Club World Cup as Cole Palmer scored twice and new signing Joao Pedro also found the net in a major statement victory
Chelsea star Cole Palmer rounded on the Blues’ critics after they destroyed Paris Saint-Germain to win the FIFA Club World Cup, declaring: “Everyone’s talked about lot of s*** about us!”
England ace Palmer was named player of the tournament after he put PSG to the sword with two goals as Chelsea picked off the European champions. Blues boss Enzo Maresca insisted the match was won “in the first 10 minutes”.
That might not necessarily be true, but it was won in the first half. Palmer scored two goals of wonderful quality, twice caressing the ball into Gianluigi Donnarumma’s bottom corner and giving the giant Italian no chance.
Joao Pedro added a wonderful third before half-time, wonderfully dinking home, and while Chelsea ran out 3-0 winners at MetLife Stadium, the truth is it could have been more. They dictated the game against PSG in a way no-one has quite managed in the past 12 months, rushing the French side into mistakes, blunting their attack and playing the game on their terms.
It was a tactical masterclass by Maresca and PSG frustrations boiled over as Joao Neves was sent off for pulling Marc Cucurella down by his hair, before Luis Enrique lashed out at Joao Pedro after the final whistle, as a massive melee kicked off on the pitch.
READ MORE: Luis Enrique hits Chelsea star and leaves him on floor as fight breaks out after Club World Cup FinalREAD MORE: Chelsea win FIFA Club World Cup and £97m prize money as Cole Palmer destroys PSG
Palmer revelled in Chelsea’s success post-match, declaring: “It’s a great feeling! Even better because everyone doubted us before the game, we knew that.
“To put a fight on like we did, it’s good. I like finals. It’s happened again.”
And when asked about his goals and boss Enzo Maresca, he made his feelings crystal clear on both the Blues boss and what he feels about life at Stamford Bridge – and some of the criticism aimed at both the manager and the team in the past 12 months.
“The gaffer put a great game-plan out He knew where the space was going to be. He tried to free me up as much as possible and I just had to repay him and score some goals.
“He is building something special, something important. Everyone has talked a lot of s*** about us all season but I feel like we are going in the right direction.”
Maresca was thrilled with what he had seen from his players. He said: “No words for the players. They deserve [this]. It’s a good moment.
“For me, we won the game in the first 10 minutes. In the first 10 minutes, we set the tempo, we set the way we wanted to play. We were very good. Unfortunately with the weather conditions, it is not easy to continue for 90 minutes, but I think we won the game in the first 10 minutes.”
Asked how excited he was ahead of the new season, Maresca added: “Yes, very excited, but a bit more excited that we have three weeks off now.”
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Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle ahead of the 2025/26 season, saving members £192 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
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