Chelsea player ratings vs Fluminense: Joao Pedro dazzles on full debut as duo get 8/10 | Football | Sport

July 8, 2025 3,876

Chelsea cruised into the Club World Cup final with a deserved victory over Fluminense, with Joao Pedro taking all the plaudits on his full Blues debut. The forward, who recently joined the club from Brighton, scored a brilliant brace to help the west Londoners maintain their hopes of glory. They will face either Real Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain in the showpiece match this weekend.

Pedro started the match and marked his full debut in style with a brilliant curled finish to open the scoring for Chelsea. Fluminense responded well and nearly scored a quick-fire leveller, but Marc Cucurella was there to make a last-ditch clearance.

The underdogs were then awarded a penalty when Trevoh Chalobah handled inside the area, but the decision was overturned following a VAR intervention. Chalobah’s arm was deemed to have been in a natural position.

Chelsea regained the upper hand after the break and were rewarded with another goal from Pedro, who smashed the ball against the crossbar and over the line. From there, the result was never in doubt and the Blues held firm to secure an impressive victory.

Express Sport rates and slates the Chelsea players following tonight’s win…

Chelsea player ratings vs Fluminense

Robert Sanchez – 6

Was caught in two minds when Hercules raced through and had to be bailed out by Marc Cucurella. Improved after the break, getting down well to save a driven effort from Everaldo. Booked for time-wasting in the closing stages.

Malo Gusto – 7

Chipped in at both ends of the pitch, getting up and down in equal measure. Almost doubled Chelsea‘s lead with a close-range header shortly after Pedro’s opener.

Trevoh Chalobah – 6

Used his imposing frame to win physical battles in the defensive third. Could have done nothing to prevent the ball from hitting his hand in the penalty incident, which was rightly overturned.

Tosin Adarabioyo – 6

Nearly opened the scoring with an early header but narrowly missed the top corner. Did okay in general but his passing was slightly wayward at times.

Marc Cucurella – 7

Produced a brilliant goal-line clearance to deny Hercules an equaliser for Fluminense. Defended well and made a nuisance of himself going forward. Decent.

Moises Caicedo – 7

Was tasked with breaking up play in the middle third and did his job well enough. Kept things ticking with some clever passing. Picked up a knock in the final minutes of stoppage time, which was hopefully nothing too serious.

Enzo Fernandez – 8

Flew into a crunching tackle in the early exchanges and was very fortunate to avoid a booking. Apart from that, played well and was the heartbeat of the team. Grabbed the assist for Pedro’s second goal with a delightful pass.

Pedro Neto – 8

Made things happen out wide, using his tricky feet and quick turn of pace to regularly beat his marker. Posed a constant threat before he was replaced in the second half. A strong showing.

Cole Palmer – 6

Produced a few great crosses but was not quite at his brilliant best. Had a hand in most attacking moves without setting the world alight.

Christopher Nkunku – 6

Was relatively quiet to start with, not getting involved with play as much as he would have liked. Got better in the second half and nearly scored with two close-range efforts.

Joao Pedro – 9

Marked his first Chelsea start with a stunning goal, curling the ball home from outside the box. Scored an equally brilliant second to put the game to bed. Two finishes of the highest quality. Almost perfect.