DOUBLE IMPACT

CHELSEA coach Enzo Maresca hailed Joao Pedro and expressed his delight at reaching the Club World Cup final after the new signing's double strike secured a 2-0 win over Fluminense in the last four on Tuesday.

Maresca wysed: “We are very happy and very proud to be in the final on Sunday because this is the first edition of the Club World Cup and the best clubs in the world are here.”

Joao Pedro was starting for the first time since arriving from Brighton and Hove Albion for a reported £60 million (R1.5 billion) last week, fresh from an off-season break.

The Brazilian made an immediate impact in the game at the MetLife Stadium just outside New York.

He produced two superb finishes, either side of half-time, to take Chelsea through to Sunday's final.

Maresca said of the 23-year-old: “I am very happy for Joao. He has the quality to decide games like today, but also he was on holiday so is probably a bit more fresh compared to the rest.

“We knew what Joao was like. We brought him in because this season we faced many teams with low blocks and his quality is very good against these kinds of teams.”

The striker did not celebrate his goals out of respect for the club from Rio de Janeiro, with whom he started his career before moving to England with Watford in 2020.

Joao Pedro he said after collecting his award for player of the match: “When I was young they gave everything to me, they showed me to the world.

“If I am here now it is because they believed in me so I am very grateful but this is football, I have to be professional. I feel sorry for them but I have to do my job.”