Chelsea eventually booked their spot in the quarter-finals of the Club World Cup after finding a route past Portuguese giants Benfica following a huge delay in the USA
Reece James admitted he feared Chelsea ’s marathon Club World Cup tie would never finish. Chelsea’s last 16 clash with Benfica turned into a complete farce when it was delayed for nearly TWO HOURS because of lightning storms and a severe weather warning and eventually took four hours and 38 minutes to complete after kick-off.
James said: “It was in the back of my mind that there was a chance that the game was not going to get completed. It was quite disruptive. We’re happy, you know, we are into the next round and the game is completed.
“We got to 85 minutes and then had to sit on wait for, I don’t know, a period. It was difficult, the climate was very hot and humid.”
It is the sixth game in the Club World Cup which has been delayed by the weather and the third time a game has been delayed by over an hour.
Strict US rules mean if there is lightning within a five mile radius then the game is delayed by 30 minutes for safety reasons – and the time delay is then reset every time a bolt is spotted.
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It is highly likely FIFA will review those protocols before the international World Cup next summer as the climate in the United States has been challenging.
Chelsea actually produced their best performance of the tournament against Benfica and James opened the scoring with a 64th minute free kick and they were heading for victory.
Incredibly, Chelsea were just six minutes from victory when their players were ordered off the pitch as they had to take cover in the dressing room while the fans were also evacuated from the stands for one hour and 53 minutes until the game restarted.
But then when the match eventually restarted, Benfica snatched a dramatic 95th minute equaliser when Angel Di Maria scored from the spot after a highly controversial penalty was given against Malo Gusto.
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Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni was sent off for a second yellow card in extra time and then Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall scored in extra time to finally settle a madcap, unforgettable game.
Now Chelsea must play Palmeiras in the quarter finals on Friday and Philadelphia and if Manchester City win their game with Al-Hilal in Orlando on Monday then they are on course for a semi final showdown in New York if they both progress.
The chance of an all English showdown 3,500 miles from home in New York would be an American dream and a red hot ticket for FIFA. But FIFA must overcome big problems in the Club World Cup to make this tournament a big success and also next year’s international World Cup – starting with the weather.
They cannot change nature but they can think about where games are played and if you can reduce the safety protocols to stop such big delays. Chelsea now face Palmeiras in the next round and the celebrations at the end against Benfica showed how much this meant.
James added: “We’re in a stage of a tournament where you win, you carry on, you lose, you go home. It’s knockout football. We got so close in 90 minutes and we felt short. And yeah, we managed to do it in extra time.
“You don’t make up the favourites, we’re the players. You know, we try and start well against whoever we’re playing. It’s going to be another tough game. Palmeiras has got amazing players and they’re a good side. We’re going to set out to win.”
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