Striker starts in absence of suspended Nicolas Jackson
Chelsea into last 16 with composed 3-0 victory over ES Tunis
It must be tough to play free-flowing football when it feels as if the game is being staged in an airless hotel room and nobody knows how to turn off the central heating. Chelsea nonetheless managed to keep their cool in suffocating conditions in Philadelphia, securing their place in the last 16 of the Club World Cup thanks to a composed 3-0 victory over Espérance.
This was a positive night for Enzo Maresca, who encountered few problems after trusting his second string to see off the Tunisian champions. Liam Delap scored his first goal for his new club and although Chelsea finished behind Flamengo in Group D there are benefits to going through in second place. After all a date with Bayern Munich on Saturday has been swerved, albeit more by luck than judgment after Benfica took advantage of Vincent Kompany’s disastrous attempt at rotation by nabbing top spot in Group C with a shock 1-0 win over the German champions on Tuesday afternoon.
Of course, Chelsea should not take anything for granted when they head to Charlotte to face Benfica, who are experienced competitors at Champions League level. Equally, though, the picture does look rosier than after last Friday’s ragged 3-1 defeat to Flamengo. A humiliating early exit has been avoided and Maresca will be pleased to have rested Cole Palmer, Moises Caicedo, Levi Colwill, Pedro Neto and Reece James against opponents as limited as Espérance.
