Fabian Ruiz scored twice and Paris Saint-Germain dazzled in their reunion with Kylian Mbappe, dismantling Real Madrid 4-0 on Wednesday to reach the Club World Cup final.
In front of 77,542 mostly white-clad fans at MetLife Stadium just outside New York, Ruiz and Ousmane Dembele struck inside the opening nine minutes, stunning Madrid and seizing early control. The Spanish midfielder doubled his tally before the break, and Gonçalo Ramos added a late fourth to cap a ruthless performance by Luis Enrique’s side.
PSG now head into Sunday’s final against Chelsea with the chance to crown a historic season, having already lifted the Ligue 1 trophy and captured their first UEFA Champions League title 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.”
After blowing away Inter Milan 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 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 an impact in his first start at the tournament and his first game against PSG since leaving the French club last year.
The defeat is a real blow to Real, who hoped to win the inaugural 32-team Club World Cup to add to their record tally of 15 European Cups.
PSG were without imposing center back Willian Pacho due to suspension following his sending-off against Bayern Munich in the quarterfinals, but it didn’t matter.
Lucas Beraldo slotted into the defense with ease, and the rest of PSG’s first-choice lineup was present.
Day to forget for Mbappe
Real were missing central defender Dean Huijsen through suspension, while the absence of Trent Alexander-Arnold was an added blow.
The return to the starting XI of Mbappe, who missed the entire group stage through illness, did not prevent young striker Gonzalo Garcia from keeping his place.
But the Spanish giants’ front line, completed by Vinícius Júnior, made no real impact – such was the extent of PSG’s domination.
Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois made two superb saves inside the opening five minutes – first tipping away a Ruiz shot, then denying Nuno Mendes from point-blank range.
Yet Courtois couldn’t prevent Paris from scoring in the sixth minute, as Dembele pounced on slack defending by Raúl Asencio. The Real keeper saved at the forward’s feet, but Ruiz converted the loose ball.
Three minutes later, the contest was effectively over when Antonio Rüdiger failed to control a simple pass from Jude Bellingham, allowing Dembele to run through and finish low into the corner.
Like his friend Mbappe, Dembele was starting for the first time in the competition after recovering from injury. It was his 35th club goal since August – an impressive tally for a player now considered a serious Ballon d’Or contender.
It turned into a humiliating afternoon for Real as PSG added a third midway through the first half.
A deflected shot by Mbappe was easily held by Gianluigi Donnarumma, and no Madrid player touched the ball again before it was in their net a minute later.
Dembele released Achraf Hakimi on the right, and he squared for Ruiz. The Spain international took a touch to hold off Fede Valverde before finishing.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia could have scored a fourth before the interval, while Desire Doue had a goal disallowed early in the second half.
But Real were never coming back, and Alonso substituted Bellingham and Vinícius just after the hour mark – a clear sign of surrender.
PSG sealed the rout in the 87th minute, when Ramos controlled a pass from fellow substitute Bradley Barcola, turned and fired home.
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