Arya News - Chelsea 3-0 PSG: Enzo Maresca’s side stunned the European champions to become the tournament’s first ever winners
No one truly knew how Enzo Maresca ’s side was going to approach this. Maybe they sit back and try and catch PSG on the counter – because surely they can’t beat the French giants at their own game? Think again.
Chelsea started with intent. They were pushing PSG back, dealing them a dose of their own medicine as they piled on the early pressure. Everyone in the ground thought the London underdogs had snatched a shock lead when Cole Palmer, latching onto a beautiful flick from Joao Pedro, bent towards the top corner and made the net ripple. His shot had gone just wide of the post and ricocheting off the support behind the goal into the net, creating the illusion of an opener.
It was a poor miss for Palmer’s standards, but he made no same mistake when opportunity arose again. Taking his time after being teed up by Malo Gusto, he slotted into the bottom-left corner from the outside of the box, firing beyond the reach on the long-limbed Gianluigi Donnarumma to give Chelsea an invaluable breakthrough on 22 minutes.
Cole Palmer celebrates after putting Chelsea in front (AFP via Getty Images)
We braced ourselves for what felt like the inevitable PSG response – the one that would see the Parisians unleash a demolition on the Blues for even daring to threaten their dominance. But it didn’t come.
Instead, Chelsea made it two, just eight minutes later. Palmer with an identical finish, delightfully dummying his man after Joao Pedro dragged namesake Joao Neves away from contention with a crucial decoy run. The Brazilian, who had been proving throughout the first half that his stunning Fluminense brace was not simply down to beginner’s luck, deserved his flowers for his subtle part in doubling Chelsea’s lead. But there was no nuance to Joao Pedro’s involvement in the eventual third.
Linking up with Palmer once more as half-time drew closer, he latched onto a defence-splitting ball in behind before dinking Donnarumma, giving Chelsea what suddenly felt like an insurmountable advantage, even for this PSG team. Barring a stunning capitulation, Chelsea were on the brink of becoming world champions.
Chelsea new boy Joao Pedro made it three goals in as many appearances (Getty Images)
PSG’s youthful exuberance has been at the heart of their success over the past eight months, finally achieving their holy grail in winning the Champions League. They looked unfazed in Munich, putting on a clinic to record the most devastating European Cup final victory in history. But here, for the first time, the lack of experience of Enrique’s game-changers was being exposed.
Desire Doue, 20, should have given PSG the lead earlier in the first half, before Palmer had a chance to inflict his damage. Put on a plate for him by Kvhicha Kvaratskhelia’s low cross, he bewildering chose to square back towards Achraf Hakimi from a few yards out instead of tapping past Robert Sanchez for what looked a simple finish. It was a glaring miss that no doubt changed the course of the game – and history – as PSG’s reputation as a unconquerable force was chipped away.
An over-the-top American-style half-time show involving Coldplay’s Chris Martin and Doja Cat perhaps invigorated a now-desperate PSG side, who came out for the second period looking to spark a comeback. They looked certain to reduce the deficit when Ousmane Dembele , who has 35 goals to his name this season, received the ball on the edge of the six-yard box, only to be denied from close range by the regularly lamented Robert Sanchez, whose outstretched arm somehow pushed the Frenchman’s effort around the post.
Robert Sanchez produced an unbelievable stop to prevent PSG from sparking a comeback (Getty Images)
The Spaniard’s intervention was pivotal in preventing what could have easily been a PSG resurgence. The Parisians continued to seek a way back into the game, but Chelsea were now playing to frustrate, to wind their opponents up. Chelsea’s master of such an art is Marc Cucurella , who after being hacked down in his own box, makes sure to stay down and milk the moment, resisting the frenzied attempts of Neves to pick him up by sandbagging the Portuguese midfielder.
To say that the 20-year-old was irritated was an understatement. He tried getting his revenge with five minutes to play, pulling the Spaniard’s increasingly iconic curly locks in an ill-advised release of frustration. But in a world of VAR, that was only going to end one way, as Neves was promptly shown red to leave PSG at a further numerical disadvantage as the final drew to its conclusion.
Any debate over player investment in the competition was quashed at full-time as ugly scenes broke out between the two sides . Their club’s untouchable status no more, Luis Enrique and Donnarumma lost their heads as a brawl broke out, Joao Pedro seemingly PSG’s common enemy as their Spanish tactician hit the Chelsea newcomer with a post-match slap. Maybe a sour end to a tournament that’s had its fair share of issues, but if nothing else, it showed the players and coaches truly do care about the Club World Cup.
A brawl between the teams broke out after full-time (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
Reece James, beside Donald Trump, lifts the Club World Cup trophy (Getty Images)
And as Chelsea ran over to celebrate in front their sea of blue supporters, finally separated from fisticuffs with the French, what they had achieved felt seismic. Not solely thanks to the occasion, but because of the opponent and the nature of the victory.
Is this the pinnacle of Chelsea’s rebuild? They’ll hope not. Despite the grandiose status of “world champions” and the golden badge that will represent such a fact for the next four years, there are still bigger fish to fry. Instead, this is a huge step forward for Maresca’s Chelsea, as the Italian looks to prove his side and tactical mindset belong at the top.
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