A Fabian Ruiz double helps Paris Saint-Germain thump Real Madrid to set up FIFA Club World Cup final against Chelsea.
Fabian Ruiz scored twice, Ousmane Dembele tallied a goal and an assist, and Paris Saint-Germain eliminated Real Madrid as well as Kylian Mbappe from the FIFA Club World Cup by sailing to a 4-0 semifinal win.
PSG built a 3-0 lead in 24 minutes, deflating the heavily pro-Madrid crowd on Wednesday. Goncalo Ramos, who subbed on for Dembele early in the second half, added a goal for good measure in the 87th minute.
Gianluigi Donnarumma parried one early shot by Mbappe and finished with two saves, but the PSG defence was otherwise unbothered en route to their fifth clean sheet in six tournament matches.
Wednesday marked Mbappe’s first time facing PSG, for whom he scored 256 goals over seven years before joining Madrid a year ago. After coming on as a substitute in the past two matches, Mbappe started up front alongside Gonzalo Garcia, but was held off the scoresheet.
Trent Alexander-Arnold was out of Real Madrid’s squad, reportedly due to a training injury.
Coming off its first European title, PSG will play for the championship on Sunday.
Real fared no better than Inter Milan, overrun by PSG 5-0 in the Champions League final. The 15-time European champions looked sluggish after travelling to Florida for training between games, and PSG had 76.5 percent possession in the first half.
A crowd of 77,542 was at MetLife Stadium on a scorching day, with a temperature of 33 degrees Celsius (91 degrees Fahrenheit) at kickoff and humidity that made it feel like 38C (101F).
PSG’s attack wasted no time, however, forcing Courtois to make two difficult saves during the first five minutes. But in the sixth, Dembele robbed Raul Asencio of the ball in the centre of the box, tapped it away from Courtois’s diving reach and set up Ruiz for a one-timer into the back of the net.
Dembele made Madrid pay again when he closed in on Antonio Rudiger, who proceeded to whiff on a pass attempt in the defensive half. Dembele bolted away and beat Courtois in the bottom left corner for a 2-0 lead less than nine minutes in.
After Mbappe’s third shot of the day was blocked, PSG ran out on a clinical counterattack. Achraf Hakimi sprung free down the right side on a give-and-go with Dembele, and Hakimi’s cross set up Ruiz’s second goal in the 24th minute.
Paris Saint-Germain will face Chelsea on Sunday in the final. Chelsea won the title in 2021, while PSG will try to become the first team from France to capture the trophy.
PSG has earned $88.4m to $113.8m for reaching the final, the amount depending on a participation fee.
