Chelsea FC have reached the quarter-finals of the Club World Cup. The Londoners beat Benfica Lisbon 4-1 after a two-hour stoppage and extra time.
29.06.2025, 07:16
29.06.2025, 08:55
SDA
Up until the 86th minute, everything pointed to an unspectacular victory for Chelsea FC. London captain Reece James surprised Benfica keeper Anatoli Trubin with a free kick in the 64th minute. Events only came to a head after the match was interrupted for almost two hours due to an approaching thunderstorm.
The spectators, who had made their way home early after the sixth interruption due to a possible thunderstorm at this Club World Cup, missed the best part. After the restart, Angel Di Maria scored with a handball penalty to make it 1-1 (95'). Chelsea digested the shock and dominated extra time, partly because Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni was sent off early on with a yellow card. Christopher Nkunku scored in the 108th minute after another mistake by Trubin. England's final two goals came from Pedro Neto (114') and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (117') on the counter-attack.
The defeat marked the end of Di Maria's career in Europe. The 37-year-old Argentinian will now move to his regular club Rosario Central. For Chelsea, the tournament continues on Friday in Philadelphia with the quarter-final against Brazil's Palmeiras.
