Chelsea Defeats Al Hilal 1-0 to Reach FIFA Club World Cup Final

Chelsea FC has qualified for the final of the FIFA Club World Cup, currently held in the United Arab Emirates, after defeating Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal 1-0 on Wednesday in the semifinal. The only goal of the match was scored by Belgian international Romelu Lukaku in the 32nd minute, securing Chelsea's spot in the final on Saturday against Brazil's Palmeiras, the Copa Libertadores champion, who advanced by beating Egypt's Al Ahly 2-0 in the other semifinal match on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Al Hilal will face Al Ahly on Saturday in an all-Arab matchup to determine the third and fourth places. Al Hilal, participating in the Club World Cup for the second time in its history after winning the AFC Champions League last season, proved to be a real challenge for Chelsea, missing several golden opportunities to equalize and push the match into extra time. However, the performance of Spanish goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga was crucial, as he made several key saves against the shots from the Saudi stars.