East Rutherford: Joao Pedro scored twice against his boyhood team in his first start for Chelsea, leading the Blues over Fluminense 2-0 to assure an all-European Club World Cup final.
A 23-year-old who had been at Fluminense from about age 10 until leaving for Watford in 2020, Joao Pedro scored in the 18th and 56th minutes Tuesday and refused to celebrate either goal in a sign of respect for his former club. He joined Chelsea from Brighton on July 2.
Seeking their second world championship, Chelsea advanced to Sunday’s title match against the winner of Wednesday’s game between European champions Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid.
European teams will win their 12th straight Club World Cup title and 17th in 18 tries, the lone exception a 2012 victory by Brazil’s Corinthians over Chelsea, who won in 2021.
Fluminense were initially awarded a first-half penalty kick but it was taken away in a video review. Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo injured his left ankle in second-half stoppage time.
Chelsea went ahead after German Cano lost the ball to João Pedro, and he poked it to Pedro Neto, who dribbled down a flank and crossed. An attempted clearance went to João Pedro, who curled a 20-yard shot inside the far post. He took two steps to start to celebrate, then stopped.