Premier League club Chelsea has secured its place in the final of the Club World Cup, comfortably defeating Fluminense 2-0 on Tuesday, thanks to a brace from new acquisition Joao Pedro in his inaugural start for the London club.
The Brazilian forward’s decisive strikes at MetLife Stadium set up a championship showdown on Sunday against either European counterparts Real Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain.
Pedro, a 23-year-old striker signed from Brighton and Hove Albion for £60 million just last week, cut short his off-season break to join Chelsea.
He made his debut as a substitute in the quarter-final triumph over Palmeiras and was subsequently handed his first starting berth up front, filling in for the suspended Liam Delap.
Notably, Pedro opted not to celebrate either of his goals out of respect for Fluminense, the club where he began his professional journey and made 36 senior appearances before moving to England with Watford in 2020.
The outcome of the match brings an end to Fluminense’s commendable run in the tournament.
The 2023 Copa Libertadores champions previously achieved a draw against Borussia Dortmund in the group stage, overcame Inter Milan in the Round of 16, and eliminated Al-Hilal (the team that had knocked out Manchester City) in the quarter-finals.
With Fluminense’s departure, the prospect of a South American team claiming the trophy in this expanded 32-team Club World Cup has vanished, as Chelsea earned back-to-back victories against Brazilian opponents to reach the final.
As widely anticipated, the tournament’s ultimate prize will now be contested by two of Europe’s footballing powerhouses, guaranteeing that the final will feature two of the last five winners of the UEFA Champions League.
Fluminense coach Renato Portaluppi previously characterised his squad as the ‘ugly duckling’ of the competition, drawing attention to the vast disparity in financial resources between his team and the other three remaining contenders in the United States.
Ultimately, this semi-final proved to be an insurmountable hurdle for his side, which was captained by the 40-year-old former Chelsea centre-back, Thiago Silva.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca navigated the match without the suspended Levi Colwill and Delap, though midfield linchpin Moises Caicedo returned to the starting lineup after sitting out the victory over Palmeiras in Philadelphia due to a ban.
The Blues proved too formidable for their Brazilian opponents in front of 70,556 fans on a warm afternoon just outside New York City.
Chelsea took the lead with a superb effort from their new attacking talent. Pedro expertly controlled the ball at the edge of the penalty area after Thiago Silva cleared a cross from Pedro Neto.
He then took a touch before curling a shot beyond veteran goalkeeper Fábio into the far corner, immediately holding up his hands in an apologetic gesture towards the Fluminense supporters behind the goal.
The team from Rio de Janeiro posed an intermittent threat throughout the game. Hercules, who was the match-winner against Al-Hilal in the last eight, nearly levelled the score in the 25th minute.
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After a quick one-two with German Cano, he lofted the ball over goalkeeper Robert Sánchez, but Marc Cucurella made a crucial goal-line clearance.
Fluminense was then briefly awarded a penalty ten minutes before halftime when a set-piece delivery from René struck Trevoh Chalobah’s arm in the box. However, French referee François Letexier reversed the decision following a review by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR).
Chelsea extended their lead in the 56th minute, shortly after Fluminense had made a tactical substitution, trading a defender for an additional attacker.
Enzo Fernandez initiated a swift counter-attack, releasing Pedro, who subsequently produced another clinical finish, striking the ball in off the crossbar
