When the world had expected that one of PSG’s stars in Achraf Hakimi, Vitinha, Desire Doue, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia or Ousmane Dembele, would headline the outcome of the Club World Cup and that story was bout to be told, it got shredded to smithereens inside MetLife Stadium in New York New Jersey.
Softfootball had seen PSG thump Internazionale Milano 5-0 in the recent UEFA Champions League final, thrashed Atlético de Madrid and Real Madrid C.F. 4-0 in the States but in the finals of the CWC, they themselves became the victims of a proper beating.
The proper beating was handed out by Chelsea and it was headlined by Cole Palmer. The 23-year-old broke the deadlock with a composed finish. Then he charged on to a Levi Colwill ball over the top, flashed a dummy, sold Vitinha a dummy and buried the ball into the same bottom corner.
Chelsea’s stunning success at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup was reflected in the end-of-tournament awards as Cole Palmer and Robert Sanchez collected two of the top individual honours with the Golden Ball and Golden Gloves.
Desire Doue, the rising star of runners-up Paris Saint-Germain, was also recognised as the young player of the tournament after the most inclusive club competition in history came to a fittingly first-class conclusion with an enthralling final at a packed MetLife Stadium.
According to FIFA, the winners of the adidas Golden Ball, adidas Golden Glove and FIFA Best Young Player Award presented by Panini awards were all decided by the FIFA Technical Study Group, headed by FIFA Chief of Global Football Development Arsène Wenger.
Softfootball had earlier reported how Real Madrid youngster, Gonzalo Garcia won the Golden Boot award of the tournament with his 4 goals and 1 assist. Despite not reaching the finals of 2025 FIFA Club World cup after embarrassing loss to PSG in the semis, Gonzalo Garcia finishes the tournament as the leading marksman after netting four goals and one assist from his six matches.
A tournament Chelsea eventually won after a surprise domination of PSG in the finals. Individual awards were presented on the night of the finals after Chelsea had defeated PSG 3-0 in regulation period and Gracia had been named winner of the Golden Boot.
