Fabian Ruiz on Wednesday scored twice as European champions Paris Saint-Germain turned on the style in their reunion with Kylian Mbappe, thrashing Real Madrid 4-0 in the FIFA Club World Cup semi-finals to set up a final showdown with Chelsea.
Ruiz and Ousmane Dembele scored inside nine minutes to stun Madrid and silence the majority of the 77,542 crowd who were wearing white at MetLife Stadium outside New York.
The Spanish midfielder added another before halftime and Goncalo Ramos got a late fourth, as Luis Enrique’s side moved one game away from glory at FIFA’s new tournament.
Photo: AFP
Victory against Chelsea on Sunday would complete a campaign of unparalleled success for the Parisians, who won the French title and then the first UEFA Champions League in their history in May.
“We are in a special season, a special moment and we deserved to win,” Luis Enrique told broadcaster DAZN before looking ahead to the final.
“We are going to try, one more step against a good team like Chelsea. They did great, they performed the whole competition and now it is time for us to prepare for that ... we want to make history in our club, and then take some holidays,” he said.
After blowing away Italy’s Inter 5-0, the biggest victory in European Cup final history, PSG began their Club World Cup bid by putting four past Atletico Madrid, and the ease with which they disposed of Real Madrid was striking.
PSG’s fluidity contrasted starkly with Madrid, who are a work in progress under new coach Xabi Alonso.
“We were not good enough today,” Alonso said. “We are not the first ones to lose to them, but we have a lot of different things to improve.”
Mbappe struggled to make any impact on his first start at the tournament and in his first game against PSG since leaving the French club last year.
The defeat is a real blow to Real Madrid as they hoped to win the first 32-team Club World Cup to add to their record tally of 15 European Cups.
It was tough ending for midfield maestro Luka Modric’s superlative career at Madrid.
The 39-year-old made his last appearance for the club as a substitute, but leaves a host of indelible memories from his time with the Spanish giants.
The Croatian confirmed in May he would leave Madrid after the tournament, and he is set to join AC Milan next season.
Modric turns 40 in September. but still hopes to play for Croatia at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and regular soccer is what he needs, after his minutes shrank last season under previous Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti.
The veteran midfielder won a club-record 28 trophies over 13 years in the Spanish capital, in which he conquered fans of all teams across Spain with his consistent brilliance.
“It’s not the desired finish, it’s a bitter end, but he will not be remembered for this game, but instead for other great ones,” Alonso said after the PSG humbling. “He is a legend both of world football and Real Madrid; he will be remembered for many more good things than the 25 minutes he played today.”
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