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- Chelsea's clash against Benfica was suspended with just five minutes remaining
- Play was brought to a halt in the United States because of adverse weather
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Chelsea are into the Club World Cup’s quarter-finals after one of the most bonkers matches they have ever participated in, with this beating of Benfica involving a two-hour delay due to lightning striking close to the Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
It was in the 86th minute when a severe weather warning saw the match suspended with Chelsea leading 1-0 at the time via Reece James’ surprise shot from a wide free-kick.
All 22 players were pulled off the pitch and the 25,929 supporters in attendance were told to evacuate the stands. FIFA told us that the break would last a minimum of 30 minutes, but added that every time a new lightning strike occurred within 10 miles of the stadium, the clock would require reseting. That left us twiddling our thumbs for an hour and 57 minutes until the weather trackers decided it was safe for the teams to return to finish the match.
However, Chelsea were unable to protect their 1-0 lead as Benfica were awarded a controversial penalty for Malo Gusto’s accidental handball. Angel Di Maria stepped up and made it 1-1 to send us into 30 minutes of extra time in Charlotte, with FIFA officials nervous because they had been told that a new storm was approaching the area.
It was in extra time when Benfica substitute Gianluca Prestianni was shown a second yellow card for a crunching late challenge on Levi Colwill as Chelsea gained a man advantage.
From there, Enzo Maresca’s side took control as Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall each scored to complete their 4-1 victory. They will now face Palmeiras in the quarter-finals in Philadelphia, though their stars will require downtime after this draining contest.
Given what a circus this clash turned into, you have to wonder whether we will see further instances of this next summer when the World Cup is held all across the United States. It was a strange experience for everyone involved, not least the players who had to keep themselves warmed up by riding bicycles in their changing room as they waited for news.
Chelsea’s Saturday was also hectic as they agreed a £55million deal with Borussia Dortmund to sign their 20-year-old winger Jamie Gittens. and began muscling in on Newcastle’s £50m move for Brighton’s 23-year-old forward Joao Pedro.
The Blues’ recruitment team – Paul Winstanley, Laurence Stewart, Joe Shields and Sam Jewell – left their transfer bunker in Charlotte only briefly for a stroll on the Bank of America Stadium pitch before kick-off.
It was not the greatest surface, with the ball’s bounce dying as soon as it landed on the newly-laid grass. Chelsea tried to keep it on the carpet and Maresca experimented here, playing Palmer on the left wing for the first time while finding a way to start Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia and James in the same team.
Palmer looked lively from the left while on the right, Pedro Neto forced Benfica's talented young goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin into the first of several saves he would have to make here.
Chelsea had no issues with creating chances. It was the finish which evaded them in the first half as Liam Delap cut the ball back for Marc Cucurella, who curled for the top corner.
Cucurella beat Trubin but not Antonio Silva, the Benfica defender who headed clear from the goal-line. At times, it felt as if there were three Silvas on the field, with the Portugal international showing superiority beyond his 21 years. Cucurella was also then denied again by Trubin.
After 64 minutes, Florentino fouled Palmer to give Chelsea a set-piece opportunity from wide. As James stepped up, everyone was expecting a cross. That included Trubin, who was helpless as Chelsea's club captain scored to give them their 1-0 lead.
From one bolt to another, it was in the 86th minute when our delay began as an announcement confirmed there was lightning striking close to the Bank of America Stadium.
Once they emerged after almost two hours of waiting for news, Chelsea had a lead to defend. However, the referee Slavko Vincic was sent to his pitch-side monitor when Gusto was deemed to have committed a handball. Chelsea’s players were livid with the bizarre officiating. Replays suggested it was harsh as Gusto had his back turned when Nicolas Otamendi headed the ball at him.
Di Maria stepped up and scored straight down the middle. Almost four hours after this game kicked off, Benfica had their equaliser from a controversial penalty.
There was further drama as we entered 30 minutes of extra time as Benfica substitute Gianluca Prestianni was shown a second yellow card for a crunching late challenge on Levi Colwill. Palmer gave a push to Prestianni, who did not take too kindly to that as some handbags were had.
Chelsea now had a man advantage for the remainder of the match, and were convinced they should have been awarded their own spot-kick when Christopher Nkunku was dragged down in the box off the ball.
In the second half of extra time, however, Chelsea took the all-important lead. It started with Caicedo winning possession. Palmer charging forward with the ball. He fed Caicedo, whose shot was saved by Trubin, but Nkunku managed to get to the rebound ahead of Otamendi. With 108 minutes on the clock, Chelsea were 2-1 up.
It became 3-1 thereafter when Neto broke behind. Rather than square the ball to Palmer, he finished it himself. In the dying seconds, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall sprinted behind and made it 4-1, with Chelsea now bound for Philadelphia.
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