Chelsea player ratings: Reece James impresses with free kick as Liam Delap struggles to make an impact

The Sun

4 hours ago

CHELSEA forced their way into the Club World Cup quarter-finals win extradorinaiy fashion with a 4-1 win over Benfica.
The Blues were uninspiring as they played at pre-season pace until they were made to fight for their lives in extra-time and turned on the flair to get the better of the Portuguese giants.
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Reece James ' quick thinking from a wide free kick saw him find the bottom corner and give the few fans that made the journey to North Carolina something to cheer about.
However things sparked into life when, five minutes from time, referee Slavko Vincic brought the game to a halt and told the players to leave the pitch for a suspension due to extreme weather in the area.
That led to a TWO HOUR delay, seeing players play keepie-uppies in the dressing room and try and stay warm on electric bikes.
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When they returned to action, with only a few minutes of football to finish off, substitute Malo Gusto gave away a penalty with a flailing hand and Benfica's Angel Di Maria converted from the spot to force extra-time.
What had been a dull example of why this tournament has been criticised, quickly became one of the stories of the tournament and an eye-catching additional spell.
Thankfully for The Blues, Christopher Nkuku, Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall provided the goods to turn things back in their favour to send them through to the quarter-finals where they face Brazilian club Palmeiras on Saturday.
Here's how SunSport's Joshua Hall rated every Chelsea performance...
ROBERT SANCHEZ - 6
Not much he could have done to deny Angel Di Maria's penalty and looked solid when called upon beyond that.
Still, Chelsea will still be hoping they can find an upgrade on the shot-stopper in the coming weeks of the summer window.
REECE JAMES - 8
Almost made a costly error when he tried to shield the ball from a Benfica attacker and let it role into Robert Sanchez's hands in the first half.
Got away with it, but was close to gifting an opener to the Portuguese outfit.
He, like most players on the pitch, looked like he was playing within himself to avoid injury and fatigue at what is still deemed as a glorified post-season tour until the delay turned it on his head.
He used that sleepy atmosphere to catch out Anatoliy Trubin with a near-post free-kick to give his side the lead.
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BENOIT BADIASHILE - 4
Not up to scratch to be a starting centre-back for Chelsea, even when they're playing at half-pace and against no threat.
Perhaps the only time he was called upon saw him shakily deal with Vangelis Pavlidis by way of the Greek striker inexplicably throwing himself to the ground.
He was lucky because Pavilidis looked like he would have got the better of him. Substituted off for Tosin Adarabioyo immediately afterwards.
LEVI COLWILL - 7
Colwill has become a reliable defender and a 'senior' figure in this Chelsea team, despite being just 22 years old.
He doesn't set the world alight, but he rarely make a mistake when called upon as the last line of defence.
Another solid performance from the youngster who appears to be relishing the responsibility he has been given by Maresca.
MARC CUCURELLA - 6
Terrific effort in the first half seemed destined for the top corner if not for a spectacular headed clearance off the line by Antonio Silva.
Denied again from close range when Trubin's outstretched arm blocked what looked like a certain goal.
The more advanced role that Enzo Maresca is giving him may be putting him in better positions, but until he can actually consistently provide goals and assists from those areas it seems to be a confusing decision from the Blues boss.
ROMEO LAVIA - 5
An uninspiring performance in which he did little wrong and little to impress.
The lack of pace and any real impetus from Benfica meant that Chelsea didn't really need three defensive minded midfielders on the pitch at all times.
As such, he struggled to influence anything.
MOISES CAICEDO - 6
Always a reliable ball-mover and rarely pulls of a challenge.
Unfortunately for Caicedo, the tempo for the majority of the game was so slow that he rarely had an opportunity to do what he does best in terms of breaking up play and progressing the ball.
Perhaps he needs to start adding more creativity to his game when he knows he has the likes of Romeo Lavia and Enzo Fernandez beside him.
He won't be able to do that in the quarter-final though, after receiving a one-match ban for his second yellow card.
ENZO FERNANDEZ - 4
Not his best performance by a long stretch as he tried to impress against his former team.
This felt like an example of when Maresca's insistence on deploying Fernandez as an attacking midfielder doesn't pay off.
Yes, he's scored one and assisted two from that position at the Club World Cup already, but it still looks like he would be better suited in a deeper position.
PEDRO NETO - 6
Some sloppy passing under little pressure when inside his own half and a real lack of danger when in the opposition half.
It's easy to forget that Neto cost Chelsea in excess of £50m and scored just four league goals last season.
With the news of an agreement for Jamie Gittens, Neto will be looking over his shoulder knowing exactly whose place the 20-year-old is coming for.
But he can thank Benfica's tired defence for splitting like the red sea and allowing him to bag a late safety-blanket goal in extra time to buy himself a little bit more kudos.
COLE PALMER - 7
Palmer must be growing frustrated with his teammates, constantly delivering dangerous balls into the box, shimmying into space and causing problems - yet he is rarely met with the same efforts from his fellow players.
It didn't take long for it to show either, with Palmer waving his arms in frustration at not being picked out for a pass multiple times within the first 20 minutes of the game.
Liam Delap had a golden opportunity to pick him out in the box, but failed to beat the one Benfica defender that stood in his way - passing it straight onto his foot.
When things opened up after the delay Palmer was pulling the string to help force Chelsea back in front.
LIAM DELAP - 3
If Chelsea want to find a new goalscorer to solve their striker longstanding problems, they probably need to start passing to him.
That said, when he did have the ball he didn't exactly impress - struggling to offer much in terms of creating for the players running off him.
Noticeably overhit a long ball to Palmer that ran all the way out for a throw-in during a promising counterattack.
While he couldn't even stay onside to make the moment he did get in behind count.
It's fair to say that patchy form is expected for such a young striker making such a big transfer, but on tonight's showing Delap looked like he could have played for 900 minutes and never got his goal.
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SUBS
Tosin Adarabioyo (for Badiashile, 70min) - 6
Looked comfortable enough for the period of time he was on the pitch as Badiashile's replacement.
Malo Gusto (for James, 80min) - 4
His flailing hand flicked the ball to give away the penalty deep into injury time - a costly mistake that meant almost Chelsea were dumped from the Club World Cup.
Looked desperate to make up for his mistake, but never convinced that he could actually do so.
Christopher Nkunku (for Delap, 80min) - 8
Made the difference from the bench, smashing home a shot from point blank range to ensure Chelsea hadn't fluffed their chances of advancing to the next round.
He could be playing his last few games for Chelsea with rumours swirling about his future, but this goal will be one he will always remember.
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Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall (for Fernandez, 80min) - 7
Joined in the party with a well-taken goal to give Chelsea a 4-1 lead in extra-time as Benfica's tired bodies caught up with them.
He looked good from the moment he stepped on the pitch, more like the player Enzo Maresca had at Leicester.
Trevoh Chalobah (for Lavia, 86min) - 7
Made a crucial interception to deny Benfica to snatch an extra-time winner through Andrea Belotti.
Like Tosin, he continues to prove why there is no reason for Badiashile to be starting games for this Chelsea side.