Chelsea's Joao Pedro, left, is attacked by Paris Saint-Germain's goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and coach Luis Enrique at the end of the Club World Cup final soccer match between Chelsea and PSG in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, July 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)
Republished July 13, 2025 - 7:05 PM
Original Publication Date July 13, 2025 - 3:46 PM
EAST RUTHERFORD, N,J. (AP) — A scuffle broke out after the end of the Club World Cup final on Sunday with Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique and goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma appearing to push Chelsea forward João Pedro.
Chelsea upset PSG 3-0 to win the title, scoring three first-half goals in a match that turned testy with a red card to PSG's João Neves for pulling down Marc Cucurella by his hair, along with six yellow cards.
Enrique was on the field near the center circle and appeared to push João Pedro on the throat. Donnarumma shoved the 23-year-old forward, who fell over.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca moved away Donnarumma, a fellow Italian.
“This was completely avoidable at the end,” Enrique said through a translator. “My goal and my objective as always, try to separate the footballers to avoid greater problems. There is a lot of tension, a lot of pressure, and there was a whole bunch of pushing that was going on by many people.”
PSG defender Achraf Hakimi had been gesturing at João Pedro and Chelsea midfielder Andrey Santos.
"I saw players surrounding him," João Pedro said of Santos. "Like a good Brazilian, I went to protect a friend. A lot of people were there and it ended up with me getting pushed. These things happen. They don’t know how to lose. Now it’s time to celebrate.”
Maresca said he wasn't aware of how the fracas started.
“I saw that something was going on, but I don’t know what happened,” he said,
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AP Sports Writer Eric Nuñez contributed to this report.
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