Liam Delap netted his first goal for Chelsea as the Premier League side sealed a 3-0 victory over Tunisian champions Esperance on Tuesday, securing a place in the last 16 of the FIFA Club World Cup.
Played under sweltering conditions at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field, the match saw Chelsea score twice in first-half stoppage time through Tosin Adarabioyo and Delap, before Tyrique George added a third in injury time before 32,937 spectators.
The win ensured Enzo Maresca’s men finished second in Group D behind Brazil’s Flamengo, who had previously defeated Chelsea 3-1. The result eliminated Esperance from the competition.
Speaking on Delap’s first goal in his third appearance for the club, Maresca said:
“Against Flamengo he had three clear chances to score goals, so that means he is there, in the right position, he is doing well. We know Liam is going to score goals with us, we don’t have any doubts about that.”
Chelsea now advance to face Benfica in Charlotte on Saturday. The Portuguese side had earlier topped Group C after defeating Bayern Munich. The clash will mark the first meeting between both clubs since the 2013 UEFA Europa League final, which Chelsea won.
“Benfica is a top club with a top manager and top players and it is going to be tough,” Maresca said. “But from 32, we are now in the last 16, and the next target is to try to be in the last eight.”
Maresca made eight changes to the starting lineup following the Flamengo loss, citing the intense heat in Philadelphia as a key reason for rotation.
“I said yesterday that it was impossible not to rotate players because playing every three days in these conditions is not possible,” he noted. “The ones who played were good … it is important now to recover energy and try to win the next game.”
Despite dominating possession early on, Chelsea initially struggled to break down the Tunisian defense. Fernandez missed narrowly before delivering the free-kick that led to Adarabioyo’s opener in first-half stoppage time.
Just two minutes later, Fernandez again played provider, this time feeding Delap, who turned smartly in the box and fired a low shot past Esperance goalkeeper Bechir Ben Said.
Josh Acheampong, making his 10th start of the season, had earlier tested Ben Said, while Mamadou Sarr and Andrey Santos also saw action, marking their Chelsea debuts since joining from Strasbourg.
A potential penalty for Chelsea was overturned by VAR in the second half after a shot from Santos brushed the hand of Yassine Meriah. However, the third goal eventually came when George found the net late on, courtesy of a goalkeeper error.
Esperance coach Maher Kanzari acknowledged the gulf in class but praised his side’s effort.
“We came up against a team from the very highest level and were dominated, but we didn’t disgrace ourselves,” Kanzari said.
With the heat still hovering near 30°C (86°F) deep into the night, Chelsea endured testing conditions but emerged stronger, now aiming for a quarter-final place in their next challenge against Benfica.
AFP
AFP
