A late Weverton own-goal saw Chelsea eke out a 2-1 victory over Palmeiras in their FIFA Club World Cup quarter-final at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
Cole Palmer opened the scoring for Chelsea in the first half, helping the Blues set up a semi-final clash with fellow Brazilian side Fluminense in New York on Wednesday (IST), with a place in the final up for grabs.
Palmeiras responded strongly after the break, with teenage sensation Estevao – who is set to join Chelsea – netting a stunning equaliser from a tight angle in the 53rd minute.
“Tough game as we expected,” said Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca. “First half, I think we were a little bit better compared to the second half, we controlled the game much better.
“But then they scored and the game changed but at the end we scored and I think we deserved to win. Congratulations to the players, because they have been very good.”
Despite the absence of key midfielders Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, Chelsea started brightly. Andrey Santos, 21, made his first start for the club after joining two and a half years ago. Chelsea dominated possession early, with Pedro Neto proving a constant menace for the Palmeiras defence down the right wing.
Palmer opened the scoring in the 16th minute, collecting a pass from Trevoh Chalobah on the edge of the area before weaving past three defenders with ease and curling a precise left-footed shot into the bottom corner.
Despite dominating the first half, Chelsea missed several clear chances -most notably when Christopher Nkunku fired over the bar in the 34th minute with only goalkeeper Weverton to beat.
Palmeiras, without key defenders Joaquin Piquerez, Gustavo Gomez, and Murilo, found it difficult to cope with Chelsea’s fluid attacking play in the opening period. However, they returned from halftime with renewed purpose.
They came close to levelling the score when Bruno Fuchs sent a header just wide from a corner before Estevao produced a moment of brilliance worthy of goal-of-the-tournament consideration.
The 18-year-old winger displayed his remarkable talent, cutting inside from the right, skipping past Levi Colwill, and unleashing a powerful strike from a tight angle that soared over Robert Sanchez and crashed in off the underside of the crossbar.
“Happy because we won, happy because he scored, so it’s a perfect night,” Maresca added about his new signing.
At a moment when Palmeiras appeared most dangerous, Chelsea snatched the winner at the other end. Malo Gusto exploited space down the left, and his attempted cross took a deflection off defender Fuchs, catching Weverton off guard. The ball ricocheted off the goalkeeper’s back and into the net, dashing Palmeiras’ hopes of setting up an all-Brazilian semi-final.
Fluminense shock Al Hilal to reach Club World Cup semi-final
Orlando, Jul 5 (IANS): Hercules scored the winner as Fluminense beat Al Hilal 2-1 in the FIFA Club World Cup here on Friday (local time), securing a place for the Brazilian side in the semifinals.
Fluminense broke the deadlock in the 40th minute, when Matheus Martinelli curled the ball into the top far corner, assisted by Gabriel Fuentes, reports Xinhua.
Al Hilal was awarded a penalty in the stoppage time of the first half after a tangle of legs, but the referee’s decision was revoked by VAR for “no foul”.
The Saudi side found the equalizer in the 51st minute as Kalidou Koulibaly headed the ball into the goal area, allowing Marcos Leonardo to score his fourth goal of the tournament.
However, Al Hilal failed to repeat their comeback victory over Manchester City once again, Fluminense re-took the lead in the 70th minute, after Hercules netted with a powerful right-footed shot.
In the last 15 minutes, Al Hilal players constantly fell down in the box and asked for penalty. But they couldn’t convince the referee and Koulibaly was shown a yellow card for diving.
In the mixed zone, Koulibaly spoke with confusion. “We did everything to win. Fluminense played very well defensively. I don’t understand (referee’s decision). I think everyone saw it, but I don’t know why the referee didn’t go to check the VAR for me (in the second half).”
“Sometimes we want to accept everything, but when you lose like this, I think it was a shame, because it was the chance of our life. I think the referee didn’t do his job,” Koulibaly added. “If you check the VAR in the first half, you should check it in the second half.”
Al Hilal coach Simone Inzaghi said it had been unfortunate for his team to lose. “It has been a good World Cup for us, but clearly we leave with a little bit of a bitter taste in our mouth because after what happened in that second half, we deserved much more,” he said.
Fluminense coach Renato Gaucho said their fans can be proud for wearing a jersey in the street. “We didn’t have many chances, but we made the most of them, the entire group worked and were committed.”