During the first day of the 2025 Club World Cup, organized in the United States, Paris Saint-Germain struck a blow by crushing Atlético de Madrid (4-0), on the lawn of the pink Bowl de Pasadena, in a one-way match which confirmed the opposite dynamics of the two teams. Ultra-dominators, the Parisians unrolled their football, carried by Vitinha étincentlant, author of a goal, well imitated by Fabian Ruiz, Senny Mayulu and Kang-in Lee. This success confirms the excellent form of PSG, winner of 30 of his 36 games disputed in all competitions during the year 2025, and more than ever favorite in this new format of the Club World Cup, extended to 32 teams. Conversely, Atlético is going through a gloomy period with a friable defense, and a glaring lack of offensive efficiency.
But this broad defeat was also marked by two controversial arbitration decisions that ignited the debates. First, at the start of the second period when the score was still 2-0, Julián Álvarez thought he had equalized a superb sequence in the area, but his goal was canceled for a fault of Koke on Désiré Doué at the start of the action. A few minutes later, it was Clément Lenglet who received a second yellow card for a challenge – a decision deemed severe by many observers. Reduced to ten, the Colchoneros then completely fell for, collecting two goals in the second period. A nightmarish evening for Diego Simeone, whose team begins his campaign very badly in a tournament where the level of requirement is unprecedented.
The locker room does not include arbitration!
At the final whistle, Koke did not miss his words: “The team had started well, but we know the level of PSG. It is not for nothing that they are European champions. We knew it would be difficult, but for me, 4-0, it's not fair. While we could have equalized at 1-1 thanks to the shot from Griezmann. We did 2-0. It's a blow. The team tried to push. We created opportunities. We even scored for 2-1, but he was refused with a fault: if he wants to whistle it, he whistles it, and if he does not whistle it, he won't whistle it. We all saw what happened, the little details that led to that. PSG is a deserving winner given its level, they were better. Congratulations to them. We have to attack stronger, as in the second half, when we saw another team, who wanted the ball, who attacked … The expulsion has already killed us. You have all seen it. Some are yellow, others not, but it's always on the same side». Even his bell at the Slovenian goalkeeper: “At a key moment, the referee's decisions were not favorable to us, but it was football. PSG is probably the most fit team in the world. They punish you at the slightest opportunity and they won 4-0, so we cannot complain too much with this score. The fault can be whistled or not, it is possible, I do not see well. When they whistled it, the Var decided it was the case. I don't understand the yellow cards. The red card on Lenglet was a fault on me, and then he expelled one of our players. It's hard to play eleven against PSG, so the last minutes, ten players, were very complicated».
Nevertheless, Diego Simeone did not want to overwhelm arbitration, aware of Parisian superiority: “In the second half, we resisted better, leading 2-1 thanks to this action, which he often did not whistle and let continue. But this time, the Var challenged him to make him change his responsibility, because he let him continue. It was a goal, they refused it, and it was difficult. Then Lenglet was expelled, and they took advantage of these opportunities. I am enough of talking about repetitive subjects. Otherwise, we always seem to be victims, and I don't feel like anything. We played against a great opponent, better than us. But the details are obvious». With this brilliant victory, PSG already takes a serious option for qualification in the round of 16 and affirms its ambitions in this inaugural edition of the CDM of clubs at 32 teams. Atlético, for its part, will quickly get up under penalty of leaving the competition prematurely, with an next match already decisive. The debates around arbitration are undoubtedly not over, but on the ground, Paris sent a strong message to its competitors.
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