Chelsea secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Palmeiras in Philadelphia to advance to the semi-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup, ending the Brazilian club’s four-match unbeaten run in the competition.
Enzo Maresca’s side made their intentions clear early on, nearly opening the scoring inside four minutes through Cole Palmer, whose curling shot from outside the area forced a fine save from Palmeiras goalkeeper Weverton.
Palmer would not be denied for long, however. In the 16th minute, he calmly slotted the ball into the bottom-left corner after a superb first touch, giving Chelsea a deserved lead.
The Premier League side maintained control for most of the first half, with Palmer again involved as he set up Christopher Nkunku, who failed to convert from a promising position inside the penalty area.
Palmeiras nearly equalized on the stroke of halftime, but Robert Sánchez pulled off a brilliant save to deny Vanderlan’s header aimed at the top-left corner.
The second half saw a rejuvenated Palmeiras side, and their efforts were rewarded shortly after the restart. Teen sensation Estevao, who is set to join Chelsea in the near future, fired in a stunning strike off the crossbar, leaving Sánchez no chance.
Palmeiras continued to grow in confidence and almost took the lead when Allan’s low drive narrowly missed the far post.
With seven minutes left, Chelsea found a slice of luck. Malo Gusto’s cross took a deflection off Bruno Fuchs, wrong-footing Weverton and trickling over the line to seal the win.
Weverton produced another fine save late on, pushing a Noni Madueke effort onto the post, but it was not enough to prevent Chelsea from progressing.
Chelsea will now face Fluminense in the semi-final, setting up another all-important clash with Brazilian opposition.
