Chelsea were crowned FIFA Club World Cup champions on Sunday after a commanding 3-0 victory over Paris Saint-Germain at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, thanks to a sensational first-half display from Cole Palmer.
The English midfielder struck twice and set up Joao Pedro as the Premier League side raced into a three-goal lead that stunned the European and French champions before halftime.
Palmer opened the scoring in the 22nd minute after capitalising on a defensive lapse by Nuno Mendes, calmly slotting home from Malo Gusto’s cut-back. He doubled the advantage with a moment of brilliance shortly after the cooling break, receiving Levi Colwill’s through ball, feinting to send a defender the wrong way, and finishing clinically into the bottom corner.
Palmer then turned provider, racing up the channel to tee up Joao Pedro, who beat the offside trap and deftly chipped Gianluigi Donnarumma to make it 3-0 before the interval.
PSG’s frustrations boiled over late on, as Joao Neves was sent off in the 83rd minute for pulling Marc Cucurella’s hair.
The emphatic win secured Chelsea’s first Club World Cup title in the revamped tournament, cementing their place among the elite of world football.
