Staff Reporter.
Cole Jermaine Palmer produced a scintillating first-half masterclass as Chelsea demolished Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 to win the Club World Cup final at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium on Sunday.
The English attacking midfielder scored twice and provided an assist for Joao Pedro in a devastating display in the revamped tournament’s decider that left the European and French champions, who finished with 10 men, shell-shocked before the break.
Chelsea struck first in the 22nd minute when PSG fullback Nuno Mendes gifted possession to Malo Gusto. While his initial effort was blocked by Mendes, Gusto collected the rebound and found Palmer unmarked in the middle and the midfielder made no mistake, slotting a tidy finish just inside the left post.
Palmer doubled the lead after the 30th-minute cooling break with a goal of sublime quality. Latching onto a precise through ball from Levi Colwill, he cut inside before faking a pass to dummy a defender and firing into the bottom-left corner.
Palmer then turned provider, running up the channel before finding Joao Pedro, who took the ball in his stride and beat the offside trap before chipping his finish beautifully over keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.
PSG’s meltdown was complete when their talented Portuguese midfielder Joao Neves was sent off in the 86th minute for pulling the voluminous hair of Chelsea left-back Marc Cucurella. Maresca and his players had done everything right.
They had to defend well in the second half and ride their luck at times, but they also had a towering performance from the goalkeeper Roberto Sanchez to thank.