ATLANTA: Paris St-Ge­r­main reached the Club World Cup semi-finals as Desire Doue and Ousmane Dembele goals earned the nine-man European champions a 2-0 win over Bayern Munich in a gripping battle on Saturday.

The French treble winners had Willian Pacho and Lucas Hernandez sent off in the final stages but managed to oust the German giants in Atlanta.

Bundesliga champions Bayern, who lost Jamal Musiala just before half-time with a horror ankle injury, shared an intense and even battle with the Parisians.

Luis Enrique began with leading Ballon d’Or candidate Dembele on the bench, as he continues his comeback from a quadriceps injury, but Bayern playmaker Musiala was fit to start after a calf issue.

The air-conditioned Mercedes-Benz Stadium produced the perfect conditions for a pulsating game, lit up by supremely talented dribblers on both sides, as well as two elite goalkeepers in Gianluigi Donnarumma and Manuel Neuer.

Both sides exchanged early blows as Desire Doue fired narrowly wide and Donnarumma saved Michael Olise’s low effort.England captain Harry Kane also came close for Bayern with a header that flew narrowly off target after fine work by Kingsley Coman.

Unfortunately Musiala suffered a gruesome ankle injury before half-time as he fell following a collision with Donnarumma, with the goalkeeper appearing distraught in the aftermath.

With 20 minutes remaining, Luis Enrique sent on Dembele to try and make the difference and eventually 20-year-old Doue found the breakthrough as Kane gave the ball away and PSG attacked in numbers.

Bayern were given hope as they hunted for an equaliser when PSG defender Pacho was sent off for a high tackle on Leon Goretzka after 83 minutes and substitute Lucas Hernandez was dismissed for an elbow.

Dembele sealed their victory as he tucked home after Achraf Hakimi’s run through and paid tribute to Diego Jota by copying his video-gaming celebration.

FLUMINENSE, CHELSEA ADVANCE

On Friday, Brazil’s Fluminense defeated Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal while a late own-goal by Palmeiras goalkeeper Weverton took Chelsea through to the Club World Cup semi-finals.

In Orlando, a fine left-foot finish from Matheus Martinelli had put the Rio club ahead in the 40th minute but Al Hilal’s forward Marcos Leonardo levelled six minutes into the second half before Hercules stole the show in the 70th minute to the delight of the vast majority of the 43,091 crowd.

Al Hilal had pulled off the biggest upset of the tournament, beating Manchester City 4-3, to reach the last eight and Simone Inzaghi’s side fought hard until the end to keep their adventure alive.

They bow out of the tournament having been unbeaten through the group stage, including holding Real Madrid to a draw, and having truly made their mark on the world stage.

There was a moment’s silence before the kick-off in memory of Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota and his younger brother Andre Silva, who died in the early hours of Thursday after their car veered off a motorway in Spain and burst into flames.

Al Hilal’s line-up featured two of Jota’s Portugal team-mates in Ruben Neves and Joao Cancelo.

Al Hilal coach Inzaghi said his side had been unfortunate to end on the losing side.

“It has been a good World Cup for us but clearly we leave with a little bit of a bitter taste in our mouth because after what happened in that second half, we deserved much more,” he said.

“It was a tight match, decided by episodes, as happens in football. Fluminense are very well organised team that are having an excellent tournament,” he added.

Fluminense coach Renato Gaucho was full of praise for the performance of his 40-year-old central defender Thiago Silva who ensured the Brazilians were able to withstand the second half pressure from Al Hilal.

“Thiago Silva is huge for us, I worked with him 15 years ago, he is a coach on the pitch, very helpful and conveys calm and experience to the others. He is our captain and a leader,” he said.

The match began with players and fans observing a minute’s silence in memory of Liverpool’s Portuguese forward Diogo Jota and his younger brother Andre Silva, who both died in a car crash on Thursday.

In Philadelphia, the Premier League side Chelsea edged Palmeiras of Brazil 2-1 in a last-eight tie that had been lit up by a moment of magic from young star Estevao Willian.

The teenage Brazil forward, who will join Chelsea after the tournament, was eager to impress his future employers and his brilliant 53rd-minute finish cancelled out Cole Palmer’s opener in Philadelphia.

But a deflected Malo Gusto cross went in off Palmeiras ‘keeper Weverton in the 83rd minute to take Chelsea through to a semi-final showdown with another Brazilian side in Fluminense.

“In the first half we were in control of the game and could have scored more than one goal,” said Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca, dismissing suggestions his team had been fortunate.

“They started the second half better than us and the dynamic of the game changed, but then in the last 25 minutes we were in control again and I think we deserved to win without being lucky.”

The scoreline was a repeat of Chelsea’s victory when the teams met in the final of the Club World Cup under the tournament’s old guise in 2022.

Published in Dawn, July 6th, 2025