East Rutherford: 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.
“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,” said Maresca.
Joao Pedro was starting for the first time since arriving from Brighton and Hove Albion for a reported £60 million ($79 million) 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 against Paris Saint-Germain or Real Madrid.
“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,” Maresca said of the 23-year-old.
“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.
“When I was young they gave everything to me, they showed me to the world,” he said after collecting his award for player of the match.
“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.”
Chelsea’s run to the final of the lucrative competition comes at the end of a season in which Chelsea finished fourth in the Premier League to secure a return to the UEFA Champions League. They also won the Conference League.
“The last few years have not been what this club deserves, but this year luckily things went pretty well and now we are in the final,” said the Italian.
“We are very proud to help the team be back where they deserve to be.”
One possible issue for Chelsea ahead of the final is the fitness of midfield lynchpin Moises Caicedo, who came off injured deep in stoppage time at the end of the match.
“‘Moi’ twisted his ankle. When it happened I told him that we could play with 10 players and hope it doesn’t get worse,” Maresca said.
“He felt he could try (to play on) which he did and he felt pain. Hopefully he can be fit for Sunday.”
Meanwhile, Fluminense coach Renato Portaluppi was disappointed with his team’s exit as South American hopes of winning the competition came to an end.
However, he said they had “regained credibility” for Brazilian football with their run to the semi-finals.
“Fluminense’s campaign was wonderful, I think we all felt that. We overcame some major opponents,” said the 62-year-old.
“Chelsea deserved the win but I am very proud of everything we did. We go out with our heads held high.”
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