João Pedro stole the spotlight on his first Chelsea start, scoring twice to seal a 2-0 win over Fluminense and send the Blues into the final of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
Facing his former club at the MetLife Stadium, the Brazilian opened the scoring in the 18th minute with a curling effort from outside the box after Fluminense failed to clear a Pedro Neto cross.
Fluminense nearly equalised through Hércules, but Marc Cucurella cleared off the line. They were also briefly awarded a penalty, which was overturned by VAR after replays showed Trevor Chalobah’s handball was unintentional.
Chelsea doubled their lead early in the second half on the break. Cole Palmer and Enzo Fernández combined before João Pedro fired in his second ; a thunderous strike off the crossbar.
Despite late chances for Nkunku, Gusto, and Jackson, the Blues saw out the win to reach their second Club World Cup final. Fluminense’s exit ends South American involvement in the tournament.
Chelsea now await the winner of Real Madrid vs PSG in the final.
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