Chelsea beat Fluminense behind Joao Pedro brace at MetLife Stadium, reach 2025 FIFA Club World Cup Final

Soccer Football – FIFA Club World Cup – Semi Final – Fluminense v Chelsea – MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey, U.S. – July 8, 2025 Chelsea’s Joao Pedro celebrates scoring their first goal with teammates REUTERS/Mike Segar

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ — New Chelsea signing Joao Pedro returned to haunt his former side as Chelsea comfortably saw off Fluminense 2-0 at MetLife Stadium on Tuesday afternoon to book their place in the FIFA Club World Cup Final.

Pedro, signed from Brighton and Hove Albion at the beginning of July, scored sublime goals in either half in his first competitive start for Chelsea to seal a deserved win for the Premier League side.

The Brazilian striker, who played for Fluminense’s youth sides for close to a decade before making his senior debut with the Brazilian side, was the stand-out player in a controlled Chelsea performance in sweltering heat in East Rutherford.

Enzo Maresca’s side has now recorded back-to-back wins against Brazilian opposition after defeating Palmeiras 2-1 in the quarter-finals on Friday night.

Fluminense, meanwhile, struggled to replicate impressive performances against European opposition earlier in the competition, which saw them hold German giants Borussia Dortmund to a goalless draw in the group stage and dump Italian giants Inter Milan out of the competition in the Round of 16.

Both teams struggled to create chances during a tense opening 15 minutes, with both sets of forwards struggling for quality in the final third.

There was no lack of quality about Pedro’s 18^th-minute opener, however. The striker, making his first Chelsea start after joining from Brighton at the beginning of July, curled a sublime effort into the top corner from the edge of the penalty area after Thiago Silva had only half-cleared a Pedro Neto cross.

Pedro did not celebrate scoring against his former club and held an apologetic hand up to the strong contingent of Fluminense supporters behind the goal.

Chelsea should have been two up moments later when Malo Gusto arrived at the back post to meet a Neto cross, but the right-back could only plant his header straight at the veteran Fabio.

Chelsea had Marc Cucurella to thank moments later when the left-back spared Robert Sanchez’s blushes by hooking a Jhon Arias effort off the line after the Chelsea ‘keeper was slow to react to what looked like a harmless ball.

Fluminense struggled to create chances throughout the opening period but thought they had a route back into the encounter when referee Francois Letexier pointed to the spot after adjudging that Trevoh Chalobah had handled in the area. After a lengthy VAR check, however, the French official ruled that Chalobah’s hand was in a natural position and reversed the original decision.

The Brazilian side again struggled for clear-cut chances after the break, coming closest to an equalizer when substitute Everaldo shrugged off Tosin Adarabioyo before forcing Sanchez into a relatively comfortable save at his near post on 55 minutes.

Chelsea doubled the lead a minute later to put one foot in the final – and again it was a sublime finish from Pedro. Enzo Fernandez set the Chelsea striker free with a delightful pass with the outside of his right boot before Pedro cut inside in the penalty area and unleashed an unstoppable shot that thundered in off the underside of the crossbar, leaving the 44-year-old Fabio with no chance.

Again, Pedro declined to celebrate and held up an apologetic hand.

Fluminense, who reached the semi-finals after impressive knockout wins over Inter Milan and Al Hilal, looked a shadow of that side throughout the second half as the Brazilian side tried in vain to claw their way back into the contest.

Chelsea, however, was able to comfortably keep the Brazilian Serie A side at arm’s length and book their place in Sunday’s final against the winners of Real Madrid and PSG on Wednesday.

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