Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca was proud of his team after they beat Benfica in extraordinary, weather-disrupted circumstances to reach the Club World Cup quarter-finals.
The Blues eventually emerged as 4-1 winners after extra-time in a last-16 tie in Charlotte which was suspended for almost two hours due to a thunderstorm.
Chelsea had been just four minutes away from victory following Reece James’s stunning free-kick when the players were taken off the field at the Bank of America Stadium. Such delays have been a feature of the tournament and Maresca later questioned whether the US was suited to hosting such events.
Benfica benefited from the break and forced extra-time with a controversial Angel Di Maria penalty after play finally resumed.
The game swung back in Chelsea’s favour after the Portuguese giants had Gianluca Prestianni sent off and Christopher Nkunku gave them a decisive lead. Breakaway goals from Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall wrapped up the win.
Maresca told DAZN: “I’m very proud. The performance for me was top until the last five minutes when they stopped the game, and when we restarted (it was) a completely a different game.
“When you are inside for more than one hour it’s not easy but, 1-1, we continued to play and, at the end, I think the reward was one that we deserve.”
The players were pictured riding exercise bikes and kicking balls in the dressing room during the enforced break.
Maresca said: “Especially when it’s 85 minutes, five minutes to go, it’s very difficult. But we tried to keep them in the best way we could in that moment and, at the end, we are in the last eight teams here in this competition and we are very happy.”
Chelsea will return to Philadelphia, where they played two group games, to face Brazilian side Palmeiras in the Club World Cup quarter-finals on Friday.
“Now we need to recover players, recover the energy and go again,” said Maresca.
Moises Caicedo delivered an influential performance but will miss the next game after being booked for a second time in the tournament.
Caicedo said of the team’s prospects: “We believe. We know this a tough tournament but, the thing is, we’re working hard and doing well. At the end, we’re going to see why we [are still] here.”
Reflecting on the weather delay, Marsesca said: “For me personally, it's not football. I think it's a joke. It's not football.
“I can understand that for security reasons, you have to suspend the game. But if you suspend seven or eight games, that means that probably this is not the right place to do this competition.
“It's a fantastic competition. It's the Club World Cup, all the best clubs are here,” he added. “But six, seven games suspended? It's not normal. In a World Cup how many have they suspended? Probably zero. In a European [Championship], how many games? Zero. There is some problem.”
Palmeiras prevail in Brazilian derby
Palmeiras edged out Brazilian rivals Botafogo 1-0 after extra-time to book their place in the quarter-finals.
There was little to chose between the two South American sides as the opening tie of the knockout stage proved a cagey affair at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
At the end of the first half, Palmeiras midfielder Richard Rios forced Botafogo goalkeeper John Victor into a flying save from his rising drive.
Chelsea-bound Palmeiras forward Estevao saw a goal ruled out for offside five minutes into the second half, before Victor tipped over a glancing header from Mauricio.
After neither side could find a breakthrough in normal time, Botafogo goalkeeper Victor produced another fine stop at full stretch to palm away Rios’ 20-yard strike.
Palmeiras made the decisive breakthrough in the 10th minute of extra-time when substitute Paulinho cut into the penalty area from the right and clipped a low shot into the far corner.
Botafogo – who finished second in Group B, having recorded a shock 1-0 win over European champions Paris Saint-Germain – carved out an opening early in the second period of extra-time when Igor Jesus headed over and Vitinho then crashed a volley wide at the far post.
Palmeiras were reduced to 10 men with four minutes remaining when captain Gustavo Gomez was shown a second yellow card following an off-the-ball tussle with Botafogo defender Alexander Barboza.
In stoppage time, Palmeiras defender Bruno Fuchs almost put the ball into his own net when trying to shield it back to goalkeeper Weverton from a corner as the Verdao held out to secure their spot in the last eight.
