Luis Enrique's PSG destroys Real Madrid
In less than half an hour of play, the Parisian team resolved the semi-finals of the Club World Cup (4-0)
BarcelonaXabi Alonso and Kylian Mbappé's Real Madrid were a broken toy in the hands of PSG. Luis Enrique's side devoured the Whites (4-0) and will play in the Club World Cup final on Sunday against Chelsea. If the rout wasn't bigger, it was thanks to Thibaut Courtois and the fact that the Parisian side were so overpowered that they allowed themselves to slow down.
Although the Whites started with an initial approach to Donnarumma's goal, it was merely a mirage, an oasis in the middle of the desert. Less than five minutes had passed before Courtois, a hero who can't reach everywhere with a fair defense, had already made a great double save: first to a shot from the edge of the box by Fabián and then to a point-blank shot by Dembélé. Just two minutes later, PSG returned to the attack. Doué slipped between his defenders and played a pass into the heart of the box. Asencio, who has had a Club World Cup to forget, fell asleep. Dembélé, a fierce press, made a mess of the ball and passed it to Fabián, who, now, finally found the net.
Luis Enrique has turned Dembélé into a footballer ten times better than what we saw during six disastrous seasons wearing the Blaugrana. The PSG number 10 would soon be the protagonist again, biting Rüdiger, who, while attempting a back pass, made a swerve that almost set the MetLife Stadium turf alight. Dembélé took advantage of this to seize the ball and, with his left foot, unleash a low shot that narrowly escaped Courtois. It wasn't until the 10th minute that the Parisians were already two goals up. Xabi Alonso watched from the bench, urging his inaccurate charges to calm down and wearing a black polo shirt, surely anticipating the duel.
The bloodshed wouldn't stop there. Real Madrid were a sham, a joke in bad taste, against a PSG that ferociously punished every mistake from the Whites. In the 24th minute, in a flawless counterattack, a rocket named Achraf would assist Fabián, who would score a brace despite fruitless opposition from a desperate Fede Valverde. With the score at 3-0 and the French side in a staggering advantage, the halftime break would come. After the restart, Xabi Alonso made some tactical changes, and the Whites had more possession, but they barely created any chances. However, Gonzalo Ramos, after a brilliant piece of play from Barcola, would deepen the wound with the fourth. A thrashing that hurts. Right to the heart of Real Madrid.