Flamengo's impressive World Cup start sets up tasty Chelsea showdown
Flamengo's dominant 2-0 2025 Club World Cup (CWC) victory over Esperance de Tunis on Monday will have caught the attention of Group D favourites Chelsea, and suggests the Brazilian side could have a significant affect at Fifa's revamped tournament.
The Brazilian Cup champions next face Chelsea, who beat Major League Soccer side Los Angeles FC 2-0 earlier in the day, in a mouth-watering clash at Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field on Friday that should determine the group winner.
It has been over a decade since a European team lost at the Club World Cup but the ease with which Flamengo dispensed with Esperance will give them confidence they can end that run when they face Chelsea.
The London side were the last European team to taste defeat at the tournament, losing to Corinthians in the 2012 final, but since then the continent's clubs are undefeated in 27 matches.
Flamengo midfielder Jorginho was the latest to savour the good crowds at the CWC.
'We enjoyed the goal, and the fans were amazing as I've seen before but now I'm living it. The most important thing is the performance we did. I think we controlled the game, we played well and we deserved the win.'
In Monday's matches, Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez each scored to propel Chelsea to a 2-0 victory over LA FC.
Chelsea struck first in the 34th minute, as Neto received a perfect downfield pass from Nicolas Jackson before sending defender Ryan Hollingshead to the ground with a fake and finding the back of the net with a strike past goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.
The all-important insurance goal came in the 79th minute as Liam Delap sent in a beautiful cross to Fernandez, who finished with a left-footed shot past Lloris from a few yards out.
Chelsea dominated with 65.3% possession and 17 shots, while Los Angeles finished with seven.
Giorgian de Arrascaeta and Luiz Araujo scored and Jorginho had an assist in his Flamengo debut in a their win over Esperance in their Group D opener in Philadelphia.
De Arrascaeta put the Brazilian club up 1-0 in the 17th minute, and Araujo extended the lead with Jorginho's help in the 70th.
Jorginho got his start after the former English Premier League midfielder was signed from Arsenal on June 6 after he and the team agreed to end his contract.
De Arrascaeta continued the form that has made him one of the best playmakers in Brazil's domestic league where he has 13 goal contributions in nine matches. He has been nothing if not precise in his marksmanship with nine goals on 10 shots on target.
Therefore, he was the right person in the right spot for the layoff from Araujo and the Uruguayan first touched the service from 15 yards for the 1-0 lead.
After Lionel Messi lit up the CWC opener, Miami's Hard Rock Stadium was awash in Argentine passion again as Boca Juniors fans turned it into a little Buenos Aires for their team's 2-2 draw with Benfica on Monday.
A day after draping the shores of Miami Beach in blue and gold on the eve of their team's debut, the Boca fans chanted their way into the arena and through the game, which put them in second place in Group C behind Bayern Munich after the German champions demolished Auckland City 10-0 on Sunday.
Both teams finished with 10 men after Benfica's Andrea Bellotti and Boca's Nicolas Figal picked up straight red cards in a heated contest that saw the Portuguese team cancel out a two-goal deficit.
Boca face Bayern Munich next on Friday in Miami while Benfica meet Auckland City in Orlando.
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