What should have been a night of glory ended in chaos, as Paris Saint-Germain manager Luis Enrique appeared to shove Chelsea forward Joao Pedro to the ground moments after the final whistle of the FIFA Club World Cup final.
The incident unfolded on the pitch at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, just seconds after Chelsea’s convincing 3-0 win over PSG. As emotions ran high, cameras caught Enrique moving aggressively toward Pedro, throwing his left hand toward the Brazilian’s throat or face and pushing him backwards. Pedro stumbled and fell.
It was a moment that stunned spectators, many of whom were still celebrating Chelsea’s triumph.
Speaking after the match, Pedro took a calm tone. “Everyone wants to win the game, and in the end, I think they lose their heads,” he told reporters. “But this is football. It happens. Now we enjoy because we won the tournament, that’s it.”
The 22-year-old, who had scored Chelsea’s third goal in the final, refused to escalate the matter further. “I don’t want to talk too much about them,” he said. “You know how it works. Football is this.”
The clash appeared to stem from boiling frustrations on PSG’s side. They had been reduced to 10 men in the second half after Joao Neves was sent off for pulling Marc Cucurella’s hair. Chelsea, meanwhile, had dominated the match from start to finish.
It is unclear whether FIFA will take disciplinary action against Enrique. As of Monday morning, neither PSG nor the tournament organisers had issued official statements.
For now, the shocking moment has become a major talking point, overshadowing Chelsea’s dominant win and raising questions about discipline at the highest level of the game.
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