Chelsea Suffers in Victory After an Epic Battle Against Benfica
The season, which seemed endless, had a match that almost was. Chelsea, despite fears about their campaign in the Club World Cup, faced an unexpected situation: a match that ended four hours and 38 minutes after its start. The 4-1 victory over Benfica on Saturday secured a place in the quarter-finals against Palmeiras next Friday, after Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored in extra time to seal one of the longest matches in history. The “Blues” will be grateful to have six days to recover from this match. Reece James, with a free kick in the 64th minute, seemed to have secured a hard-fought victory, but the game was just beginning. Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic stopped the game with four minutes remaining due to a severe weather alert, forcing the players to leave the field and the fans to take shelter in the Bank of America Stadium. As the storm battered North Carolina, the restart was delayed several times. Chelsea players took shelter in the locker room, some on bikes to stay active. Finally, a rainbow appeared. Faced with the threat of another storm, both teams agreed to a shorter warm-up to try to play the remaining time before the lightning returned. Nicolás Otamendi headed the ball and, after a jump by Malo Gusto, the ball hit his hand. Although it seemed unintentional, the penalty was awarded to Benfica. Ángel Di María converted the penalty in the fifth minute of added time, equalizing the score. By then, almost 8 p.m., and many of the 25,929 spectators had already left the stadium. They missed an exciting final. Gianluca Prestianni was sent off for a second yellow card in extra time, and Chelsea took advantage of their numerical advantage. Cole Palmer found Moisés Caicedo in the area. His shot was saved by Benfica’s goalkeeper, Anatoliy Trubin, but the ball was loose and, as Otamendi tried to clear, Nkunku reacted quickly to score a goal.
Maresca continued to express his frustration with the repeated interruptions in the tournament, suggesting that it might not be the right place for the competition if so many matches are suspended. The match was not the best advertisement for the tournament. Attendance was low and the field presented an unusual bounce of the ball. Although the safety of the fans is paramount, the logistics of asking the players to wait almost two hours to play, theoretically, four minutes, borders on the absurd. A time limit would need to be introduced. Charlotte is not one of the 16 host cities for the next Club World Cup, and only five of the stadiums have a roof. This match perfectly summarized the elements players will have to deal with, given the two refreshment breaks and the two-hour interruption due to the storm. “As I said, the game was very good for 85 minutes,” Maresca said. “Then we had a one-and-a-half-hour, two-hour stoppage. Afterwards, it started completely differently. It’s not the same game because the rhythm is broken.” Maresca spoke while Chelsea hurried to catch their flight back to Miami, where they will spend the week before flying to Philadelphia on Thursday night. Caicedo will be suspended against Palmeiras and there is much more to analyze, including Palmer’s performance playing on the left and the alignment of Caicedo, Romeo Lavia and Enzo Fernández in midfield for the second time. It will also be assessed whether Liam Delap has done enough to keep his place ahead of Nicolas Jackson, who returns from suspension. A period of calm will follow this chaos, and, how Chelsea needs that calm!“For 85 minutes we controlled the game. We conceded nothing, we created enough opportunities to win the match. And then, after the break, the game changed completely. Personally, I think this is not football,” declared Maresca.
Enzo Maresca
