Joao Pedro scored two stunning goals in his first start for Chelsea as they beat Fluminense 2-0 to reach the Club World Cup final.
The £60m signing from Brighton was making his first start for Chelsea and showed why they wanted him with a goal in each half to sink the Brazilian side where he started his career and set up a final meeting with either Real Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain.
Chelsea endured a couple of scares in retaining their first-half lead, Marc Cucurella doing well to clear the ball off the line after Hercules had beaten Robert Sanchez with his shot. Trevor Chalobah then saw the referee initially award a penalty against him.
Chelsea’s Marc Cucurella clears the ball off the line with Robert Sanchez beaten
The ball struck the Chelsea defender on the hand following a left-wing free-kick but a VAR review saw the official change his mind, ruling that the England international’s hand had been in a natural position. The Fluminense players were furious with the call.
In the sweltering heat of New Jersey, the fear for Chelsea was that they might falter under pressure. But as Fluminense chased the equaliser, they were punished on the break by that man Joao Pedro. His powerful strike sent Chelsea into Sunday’s final.
Player of the match: Joao Pedro
Chelsea had already made almost £60m in participation and prize money for reaching the semi-final stage of the tournament and they made another £22m with their win over Fluminense. Another £29m is on the line in the final at the weekend.
In other words, Joao Pedro has swiftly paid off a chunk of his fee with this outrageous full debut. Chelsea’s new signing had not scored from outside the box in 70 games for his previous club Brighton, but it took him just 18 minutes to curl the ball home here.
If that effort showed his class, his second-half strike highlighted other assets – his ability as a ball carrier on the counter-attack, his dribbling threat and the power of his shooting. It was an emphatic finish by the Brazilian to all but end Fluminense’s hopes.
Joao Pedro celebrates his second goal against Fluminense with Enzo Fernandez
Nicolas Jackson carried the weight of responsibility to lead the line for Chelsea last season but with Liam Delap making an encouraging start to his career with the club, this performance from Joao Pedro offered further proof that the Blues have strengthened.
His fluid movement makes him a different proposition and he even contributed at the other end of the pitch with a crucial defensive header late in the first half. He did not celebrate against former club Fluminense. But there will be many celebrations to come.
More to follow...
Who do Chelsea play next?
Chelsea will face either Paris St-Germain or Real Madrid in the Club World Cup final in New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium. The Champions League winners take on Real on Wednesday night at the same venue.
This news was originally published on this post .
About the author
První Japonec ve Slavii. Už se málem popral, chce titul a zírá, jak Češi řídí
Kollerschlag (Od našeho zpravodaje) – „Chci se se Slavií zapsat do historie,“ říká pro Sport.cz Hašioka. „Slyšel jsem, že trenér už je nejúspěšnější v české lize a chtěl bych mu pomoct k dalšímu titulu.“Už na konci června příchod japonského fotbalisty z anglického Lutonu zaujal.– Není to destinace, z níž cizinci běžně míří do Česka.– Je také prvním Japoncem v košaté historii klubu z pražských Vršovic.– Stane se teprve čtvrtým vyslancem země vycházejícího slunce, který se objeví v nejvyšší tuzemské soutěži.– A v ní kromě plzeňského Matěje Vydry aktuálně nenajdete hráče, který by se mohl chlubit starty v Premier League.„V tom je fotbal krásný a nevyzpytatelný. Kdyby Hači nehrál v Anglii, nikdy si na takového hráče nesáhneme,“ říká trenér Trpišovský.Nechápete?Vítejte u příběhu šestadvacetiletého pravého beka či wingbeka, od něhož si mistři z Edenu docela dost slibují v nové sezoně. Liga se rozjíždí už za osm dní.Proč zvítězil fotbal nad baseballemAsiat s blonďatým přelivem pochází z japonské prefektury Saitama, která […]
Uruguay resumes training for Copa América after players protest conditions
After refusing to train in protest one week before the start of Copa América Femenina, the Uruguayan women’s national team has resumed training and is on its way to Ecuador to compete in South America’s premier soccer competition, The Athletic has learned.The national team’s players union, Mutual Uruguaya De Futbolistas Profesionales (MUFP), told The Athletic on Tuesday that the national team’s protest was a result of “some differences in negotiations.”AdvertisementThe dispute began after several days of unsuccessful exchanges between the team and the Uruguayan Football Association (AUF). By Saturday, players shared statements across social media declaring they would refuse to train “because we still have no favorable response to the improvement of our conditions.” Neither the team nor the union shared specific details about those conditions.“This measure is not against our passion, but rather for a fair right,” their statement […]
Wales Euro 2025: The search for a letter that led to the creation of a national team
More than 30 years have been and gone. No one has seen the letter. But those in Wales know of its legend.In 1992, three women — Laura McAllister, Michele Adams and Karen Jones — penned a missive to Alun Evans, the Football Association of Wales (FAW) general secretary, requesting an audience. He duly accepted.AdvertisementThe footballers walked into Evans’ plush Cardiff office in the centre of the Welsh capital with anger. They walked out with a formally recognised Wales women’s national team.Thirty-two years later, Wales are competing at Euro 2025, their first major tournament. It would not have happened without ‘The Letter’.Lore such as this is ever-changing. In the case of women’s football, where archives have been reliant on oral history due to a lack of resources, fact-checking is a matter of democracy.Neither McAllister, Adams, nor Jones can remember how they […]
Giants walk off Phillies on Patrick Bailey’s 3-run, inside-the-park homer
Jul 8, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants catcher Patrick Bailey (14) runs home after hitting a three-run home run off Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Jordan Romano (68) for a walk-off win during the ninth inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images Patrick Bailey bounced a three-run, inside-the-park home run high off the right-field wall with one out in the last of the ninth inning Tuesday night, delivering the San Francisco Giants a 4-3 walk-off victory over the visiting Philadelphia Phillies. A two-run home run by Kyle Schwarber had given the Phillies a 3-1 lead in the seventh, an advantage the Philadelphia bullpen carried into the ninth. Closer Jordan Ramano (1-4), who had entered the game with one out in the eighth, immediately got himself into a jam in the ninth when Casey Schmitt opened […]
Hamilton: No problem with Verstappen joining Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton says he would recommend Mercedes to Max Verstappen and that he would have no "problem" with his once fierce rival joining his former squad.Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has, at least intermittently, been trying to sign Verstappen from Red Bull since it was confirmed in February 2024 that Hamilton was leaving the Silver Arrows to join Ferrari for this year. Wolff failed with his attempts to land Verstappen for 2025 but there has been renewed speculation over recent weeks that the Dutchman, who has won the last four world championships, could join Mercedes in 2026.Verstappen controversially beat Hamilton to the 2021 drivers' title as highly questionable officiating of the decisive season finale in Abu Dhabi left the Brit questioning his future in the sport. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player Sky Sports reporter Craig Slater […]
Yarmouth and Ffos Las feature on Wednesday
Yarmouth and Ffos Las are the venues for Wednesday's live horseracing, with all 12 domestic races being shown live on Sky Sports Racing.3.05 Yarmouth - Novelette, Sara Moon and Zighy headline featureA trappy renewal of the British Stallion Studs EBF Fillies' Novice Stakes headlines proceedings at Yarmouth. Simon and Ed Crisford's Novelette showed ability when third at Nottingham on debut before finishing second at Ripon. The Sioux Nation filly - owned by Messrs Tabor, Smith and Magnier - failed to handle the track there and should be more at home here.Richard Hughes' Sara Moon stepped forward from her debut effort at Windsor to chase home a short-priced favourite at Lingfield last month and could take some pegging back under Paddy Bradley. Her handler has been on a decent run of form recently too, with a 22 per cent strike rate […]
Related
První Japonec ve Slavii. Už se málem popral, chce titul a zírá, jak Češi řídí
Kollerschlag (Od našeho zpravodaje) – „Chci se se Slavií zapsat do historie,“ říká pro Sport.cz Hašioka. „Slyšel jsem, že trenér už je nejúspěšnější v české lize a chtěl bych mu pomoct k dalšímu titulu.“Už na konci června příchod japonského fotbalisty z anglického Lutonu zaujal.– Není to destinace, z níž cizinci běžně míří do Česka.– Je také prvním Japoncem v košaté historii klubu z pražských Vršovic.– Stane se teprve čtvrtým vyslancem země vycházejícího slunce, který se objeví v nejvyšší tuzemské soutěži.– A v ní kromě plzeňského Matěje Vydry aktuálně nenajdete hráče, který by se mohl chlubit starty v Premier League.„V tom je fotbal krásný a nevyzpytatelný. Kdyby Hači nehrál v Anglii, nikdy si na takového hráče nesáhneme,“ říká trenér Trpišovský.Nechápete?Vítejte u příběhu šestadvacetiletého pravého beka či wingbeka, od něhož si mistři z Edenu docela dost slibují v nové sezoně. Liga se rozjíždí už za osm dní.Proč zvítězil fotbal nad baseballemAsiat s blonďatým přelivem pochází z japonské prefektury Saitama, která […]
Uruguay resumes training for Copa América after players protest conditions
After refusing to train in protest one week before the start of Copa América Femenina, the Uruguayan women’s national team has resumed training and is on its way to Ecuador to compete in South America’s premier soccer competition, The Athletic has learned.The national team’s players union, Mutual Uruguaya De Futbolistas Profesionales (MUFP), told The Athletic on Tuesday that the national team’s protest was a result of “some differences in negotiations.”AdvertisementThe dispute began after several days of unsuccessful exchanges between the team and the Uruguayan Football Association (AUF). By Saturday, players shared statements across social media declaring they would refuse to train “because we still have no favorable response to the improvement of our conditions.” Neither the team nor the union shared specific details about those conditions.“This measure is not against our passion, but rather for a fair right,” their statement […]
Wales Euro 2025: The search for a letter that led to the creation of a national team
More than 30 years have been and gone. No one has seen the letter. But those in Wales know of its legend.In 1992, three women — Laura McAllister, Michele Adams and Karen Jones — penned a missive to Alun Evans, the Football Association of Wales (FAW) general secretary, requesting an audience. He duly accepted.AdvertisementThe footballers walked into Evans’ plush Cardiff office in the centre of the Welsh capital with anger. They walked out with a formally recognised Wales women’s national team.Thirty-two years later, Wales are competing at Euro 2025, their first major tournament. It would not have happened without ‘The Letter’.Lore such as this is ever-changing. In the case of women’s football, where archives have been reliant on oral history due to a lack of resources, fact-checking is a matter of democracy.Neither McAllister, Adams, nor Jones can remember how they […]
Giants walk off Phillies on Patrick Bailey’s 3-run, inside-the-park homer
Jul 8, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants catcher Patrick Bailey (14) runs home after hitting a three-run home run off Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Jordan Romano (68) for a walk-off win during the ninth inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images Patrick Bailey bounced a three-run, inside-the-park home run high off the right-field wall with one out in the last of the ninth inning Tuesday night, delivering the San Francisco Giants a 4-3 walk-off victory over the visiting Philadelphia Phillies. A two-run home run by Kyle Schwarber had given the Phillies a 3-1 lead in the seventh, an advantage the Philadelphia bullpen carried into the ninth. Closer Jordan Ramano (1-4), who had entered the game with one out in the eighth, immediately got himself into a jam in the ninth when Casey Schmitt opened […]
Yarde wants Bivol fight after Benavidez: ‘I have no fear’
Anthony Yarde will challenge for a world title against another elite opponent when he fights David Benavidez for the WBC light-heavyweight belt.After losing previous world title bids to Sergey Kovalev in Russia and then unified and future undisputed champion Artur Beterbiev, Yarde will take on the formidable Benavidez on November 22 in Riyadh. He insists he didn't hesitate to take the fight, even if biding his time might have yielded an easier world title shot. Spreaker This content is provided by Spreaker, which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies. You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Spreaker cookies or to allow those cookies just once. You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options. Unfortunately we have been unable […]
‘I want to win a game!’ – Littler’s World Matchplay hope after debut pain
Luke Littler admits his first focus on his second appearance at the Betfred World Matchplay will be to simply "win a game" after his first-round defeat to Michael van Gerwen on his debut last year.World champion Littler will aim to make it second time lucky at the Winter Gardens when the iconic tournament kicks off live on Sky Sports on July 19 after losing 10-6 to Van Gerwen in 2024. In addition to the world title he won in January, the 18-year-old's achievements already include the Premier League, Grand Slam of Darts and UK Open, but he says he will be focused on just one target initially in Blackpool."I want to pick up as many trophies as I can, but first of all, I want to win a game at the Winter Gardens," Littler told Sky Sports."So, win that first […]
Be the first to leave a comment