Paris Saint-Germain produced a scintillating performance to dismantle Real Madrid 4-0 on Wednesday and secure their place in the FIFA Club World Cup final against Chelsea. Fabin Ruiz scored twice in a dominant first half, while Ousmane Dembeleand Goncalo Ramos added goals of their own as the French champions completely outclassed a disjointed Madrid side at MetLife Stadium.
PSG took the lead in the sixth minute after a poor touch by Ral Asencio gifted Dembele possession. His initial shot was saved by Thibaut Courtois, but the rebound fell kindly for Ruiz, who calmly finished into an empty net. Just three minutes later, Antonio Rudiger’s miskicked clearance fell straight to Dembele, who charged into the box unmarked and fired past Courtois with a composed finish.
Madrid’s defence continued to unravel and Ruiz made it three inside 24 minutes. Achraf Hakimi burst down the right flank and delivered a clever ball to the Spanish midfielder, who held off Asencio with a feint before finding the net from close range. The Spanish giants had no answer to PSG’s relentless tempo and incisive movement. Courtois kept the scoreline respectable in the first half with a pair of outstanding saves-first denying Dembele’s curling strike in the fourth minute, then reacting brilliantly to block another close-range effort from Ruiz.
Real Madrid made no changes at the break, but the match remained firmly under PSG’s control. Desire Dou had a goal disallowed for offside, and although the tempo dipped in the second half, PSG remained comfortable. With three minutes remaining, Ramos put the finishing touch on a ruthless display, latching onto a loose ball to score PSG’s fourth and complete Real Madrid’s humiliation.
Speaking after the match, Ruiz reflected on a “brilliant win” in tough conditions. “Even under scorching heat, the team responded really well,” he told DAZN. “We made a perfect game and beat a top-level rival like Real Madrid in a great way. It’s job well done.”
Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso admitted his tactical gamble had backfired. With defender Dean Huijsen suspended and Trent Alexander-Arnold sidelined through injury, Alonso abandoned the five-man defence that had brought success in earlier rounds. His switch to a four-man backline proved costly against PSG’s fluid attack.
“At the beginning, the setback was strong enough with 2-0 down,” said Alonso. “The feeling is not the best, but we’ll have to try to learn from today. They are a team that has been built in two years and we are just starting here, so it will take time. Right now, what we need is a proper break. This is not the beginning of next year; this is just the end of this season. After just three weeks here, I think we can take positives from this period-not from today. We take lessons from today.”
PSG, crowned Champions League winners only last month after a 5-0 demolition of Inter Milan, now turn their focus to Chelsea. With both sides vying for their first Club World Cup title, Sunday’s final promises a fitting conclusion to a tournament that PSG have so far dominated in every sense.
– Ends
