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Ousmane Dembele was the subject of praise from fans online for his performance during the FIFA Club World Cup semi-final match between Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Real Madrid on Wednesday, July 9. The Frenchman showed why he remained a strong contender for the Ballon d’Or as PSG put Los Blancos to the sword 4-0 to set up a meeting with Chelsea in New Jersey in Sunday’s final.
Dembele made his first start of the tournament on the afternoon having missed the entire group stage due to a thigh injury. The 28-year-old made an immediate impact, forcing mistakes out of both Raul Ascencio and Antonio Rudiger inside the opening nine minutes that led to Paris Saint-Germain’s first two goals. Fabian Ruiz scored a third midway through the first half, while substitute Goncalo Ramos added the icing on the cake two minutes from time.
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Despite playing for barely an hour on the pitch, Dembele impressed for the Parisians, especially in the first half. Throughout his stint on the pitch, he had 33 touches, created three chances, won possession three times, created one big chance, scored one goal, and provided an assist. He was PSG’s second-highest-rated player with a match rating of 8.3 as per Sofascore.
Dembele’s excellent display didn’t go unnoticed; a number of fans took to X (formerly Twitter) to praise him for his performance.
A fan opined that the Fenchman will still be deserving of the 2025 Ballon d'Or regardless of the result of the Club World Cup final.
"Dembele has to win the ballon dor regardless of what happens on Sunday."
Another fan expressed excitement at the player's uptick in form.
"Happy for Dembele, he turned his career around."
A fan suggested giving the Ballon d'Or to Dembele after his standout performance against Real Madrid.
"Alright that's it, give Dembele the Ballon d'Or", they wrote.
Another fan took a swipe at Kylian Mbappe insisting that Dembele could win the Ballon d'Or ahead of him.
"In other words : Dembele won the Ballon d'Or before Mbappe. And with the SAME team that Mbappe COULDN'T WIN ",😂😂😂 they quipped.
A fan claimed Dembele should win the Ballon d'Or, believing he has proven himself.
"Dembele for Ballon d'or Joh. Je don prove himself 100%👌🏾", they chimed in.
Luis Enrique says Ousmane Dembele ‘deserves to win everything’ after his heroics in PSG vs Real Madrid clash
PSG manager Luis Enrique waxed lyrical about Ousmane Dembele after he helped the team defeat Real Madrid and secured their spot in the Club World Cup final. Speaking to DAZN after the match, Enrique said (via 101greatgoals):
“I think he [Dembele] is the best player this season by a long way. He deserves to win everything because he gave everything to the team and the team is going to achieve trophies which is the most important thing for the club.”
Enrique also hoped to count on the Frenchman in the final against Chelsea. The goal against Real Madrid was Dembele’s second in three Club World Cup appearances.
