Chelsea progressed to the quarter-finals of the FIFA Club World Cup (CWC) with a well-deserved 4-1 victory over Benfica, with a quickfire treble in ET wrapping up a four-and-a-half hour matchup.
Chelsea wasted no time in Charlotte as they flooded bodies forward inside the opening minute, with the Blues keen to extend a record that has seen them score before the break in each of their three CWC fixtures thus far.
But for every Chelsea chance, Benfica had the answer, as Pedro Neto was denied by Anatolii Trubin after 44 seconds, before Liam Delap was halted by António Silva mere minutes later.
Marc Cucurella looked to be one of the brightest sparks in Enzo Maresca’s squad and twice threatened to open the scoring in the first half, forcing a remarkable headed clearance on the goal line by Silva before an equally impressive full-stretch save from Trubin, who ensured his side would head into the break on level terms.
Chelsea had been toiling throughout against a Benfica side that hadn’t offered much offensively - and while they’d certainly been made to wait for it, the breakthrough goal did eventually arrive for the Blues when Palmer won a free-kick on the left wing that was expertly thumped home by captain Reece James in the 64th minute.
Cucurella and Delap combined beautifully with 10 minutes left to play in Charlotte as the Spaniard threaded a perfect ball through the defence for the 22-year-old, who was denied his second Chelsea goal after rounding the goalkeeper, having strayed offside in the buildup.
While Chelsea’s progression to the quarter-finals looked to be nothing more than a formality, the Blues were made to see out a lengthy weather-enforced stoppage with just five minutes of the match remaining - and that’s when the script flipped.
Benfica’s Angel Di Maria restored parity from the penalty spot in the fifth minute of stoppage time after an unfortunate handball inside the box by Malo Gusto - extending this CWC clash by a further 30 minutes, though The Eagles were reduced to 10 men for much of ET after Gianluca Prestianni was shown red.
With the threat of penalties looming, it was Christopher Nkunku who proved to be Chelsea’s hero, bundling home from close range after scrappy goalkeeping from Trubin to restore the Blues’ lead. Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall helped the English outfit seal the victory with two late goals in ET, ensuring Maresca’s men progress to face Palmeiras in the final eight.