A furious Enzo Maresca suggested that the US is not fit to host the Club World Cup after Chelsea’s 4-1 victory over Benfica in the last 16 was delayed for almost two hours in Charlotte because of a severe weather event.
Chelsea were 1-0 up and cruising towards the last eight when play was stopped with five minutes of normal left at the Bank of America Stadium after a lightning strike in the area. The teams were ordered off the pitch by the officials had to stay warm in their respective dressing rooms before play resumed after an hour and 53 minutes.
There was further frustration for Chelsea when a controversial last-minute penalty allowed Benfica to force extra-time. The Premier League side eventually pushed through to win 4-1, four hours and 38 minutes after kick-off, but there was concern about off-pitch events a year before the men’s World Cup is held in Canada, Mexico and the US.
“For 85 minutes we were in control of the game,” Maresca said. “After the break, the game changed completely. For me it’s not football. It’s already seven, eight, nine games that they suspended. I think it’s a joke to be honest, it’s not football. It’s not for us. You cannot be inside. I struggle to understand. I can understand that for security reasons, you suspend the game. But if you suspend seven, eight games, that means that probably [this] is not the right place to do this competition.”
Storms have caused six games, all held in different cities, to be suspended during the tournament. Teams also had to deal with a heatwave covering much of the east and centre of the US.
“I’m very happy,” Maresca said. “We are in the last eight of this fantastic competition. The team was very good. For me, one of the best performances in the last weeks and months.
“The problem is that when the game is suspended, it’s not football. Guys, it’s not football. You suspend the game, it’s not football. It’s completely something different. They [Benfica] scored because they need to chase. We are inside, we are winning. You go outside, mentally different. It’s difficult.
“We had an hour and a half, two-hour stop. Then it started completely different. It’s not the same game because you break the tempo. So two hours inside; people speak with the family outside, if they were good, the security. People eating, people laughing, people talking on the mobile. It’s two hours. That’s why I said it’s not football.
“It’s something that you struggle to understand. But we tried to go out, continue in the same way, knowing that it was difficult. It’s not random that for 85 minutes, we didn’t concede nothing. And then for five minutes, we conceded a few chances. Why? It’s because it started a completely different game.”
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Chelsea, who have lost Moises Caicedo to a one-game ban, will face Palmeiras next after taking advantage of Benfica going down to 10 men in extra-time with goals from Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall.
It was put to Maresca that the implementation of the protocol risked damaging the tournament’s standing. “Guys, please, don’t misunderstand me, I said it’s a fantastic competition,” Maresca said. “It’s top. We are happy to be in the last eight.
“But something happens, six, seven games suspended. In a World Cup, how many games are suspended? Zero, probably. In Europe, how many games? Zero. We are here, two weeks, they’re already suspended six, seven games. There is some problem. We are happy to be in this competition. But it’s something that is not normal.”
