Jorginho debuts as Flamengo defeat Esperance in Club World Cup opener ahead of Chelsea showdown
PHILADELPHIA, June 17 — Brazilian giants Flamengo set themselves up for a Club World Cup showdown with Chelsea by easing to a 2-0 win against Esperance of Tunisia in their opening game at the tournament on Monday.
Goals either side of half time from Uruguayan international Giorgian de Arrascaeta and Luiz Araujo gave a dominant Flamengo — coached by former Chelsea player Filipe Luis — a deserved victory in the Group D clash in Philadelphia.
Flamengo, who qualified for the tournament as a recent winner of the Copa Libertadores, fielded a strong side featuring several Brazil internationals and gave a debut to Italy midfielder Jorginho following his recent arrival from Arsenal.
Jorginho will come up against former club Chelsea when the teams meet in their second match on Friday, with the Premier League club fresh from beating Los Angeles FC 2-0 earlier Monday.
De Arrascaeta opened the scoring for the Rio de Janeiro outfit in the 17th minute at Lincoln Financial Field when he finished first time from a Luiz Araujo assist.
That set off wild celebrations among the Flamengo fans, who made up the majority of the 25,797 crowd in a stadium which can hold close to 70,000.
Flamengo had chances to increase their lead while Tunisian champions Esperance created little of note before their Algerian winger Youcef Belaili almost equalised midway through the second half.
Shortly after that Flamengo scored again, as Luiz Araujo found a pocket of space in the box in the 70th minute, turned and curled a low shot into the far corner to make it 2-0. — AFP
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
Real Madrid the Club World Cup favourites: Monterrey's Ramos
VETERAN Monterrey defender Sergio Ramos said Monday his former team Real Madrid must be considered favourites to win the Club World Cup. Paris Saint-Germain recently won the UEFA Champions League by thrashing Inter Milan in the final, with Liga MX side Monterrey set to face the Italians in their opener on Tuesday at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. However Ramos, now 39, believes his former club, Spanish giants Madrid, are the real team to beat. 'Real Madrid are always favourites in the big competitions,' Ramos told reporters ahead of the Group E clash against Inter. 'Real Madrid are the best in the world, for the level the club and players have, for the mentality that's been sewn in there for so many years.' Madrid have a new coach in Xabi Alonso as well as recent arrivals Trent Alexander-Arnold and Dean Huijsen. 'Xabi's arrival will be interesting, he won it all as a player and he knows how the club works,' said Ramos. 'That could help him a lot in this new era.' Ramos said Madrid's failure to win a major trophy this season was not down to last summer's marquee signing Kylian Mbappe, whom he played with at PSG. 'In the next five or 10 years, I'd wager that Kylian will take four or five Ballon d'Or awards home,' said Ramos. The former Real Madrid captain departed in 2021 and said he would prefer not to face his former side in the United States. 'Facing off against your old team-mates is always nice but if we won't meet that would be a lot better -- and both them and us can avoid that discomfort,' he added. Madrid open their campaign in Miami on Wednesday against Saudi Arabian side Al Hilal.
Malay Mail
4 hours ago
- Malay Mail
McLaren's meltdown, Russell grows, and Ferrari's woes deepen: Three things we learnt from Canadian GP
MONTREAL, June 17 — The crash that McLaren dreaded, but that everyone else was waiting for, will not change the team's approach, even though Lando Norris's lost valuable points in Canada. Although history suggests it is unwise to allow team-mates to compete for wins and drivers' titles, a lesson McLaren learned notably with Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna in 1989 and 1990, the team's current management believe in their approach. AFP Sport looks at three things we learned from Sunday's intriguing Canadian Grand Prix, which George Russell won for Mercedes ahead of Max Verstappen's Red Bull, reshaping the landscape of the championship: McLaren's internal scrap for glory Tough talks are expected in Woking this week after Sunday's 67th lap crash at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, when Norris accidentally drove into his McLaren team-mate Oscar Piastri, but they are unlikely to prevent more skirmishes as the pair battle on in Austria and beyond. Piastri, whose fourth place extended his championship lead to 22 points over Norris, once again demonstrated cool pragmatism while his team-mate slipped into a mist of misjudgement and ended up pointless. 'I made a fool of myself,' the Briton admitted. His Australian team-mate accepted an apology. Team boss Andrea Stella demanded analysis and discussion of precise rules of engagement. 'Good luck with that!' was the response of most experienced paddock observers. 'There will be good conversations, but they will happen when we are rested and calm,' said Stella. 'Being free to race and being clear on how to race is a value of racing itself.' He added that he wished to avoid controlling his drivers excessively from the pit wall. 'Today's episode doesn't change our approach. If anything, it will strengthen the principles that require more caution by our drivers.' A call for advice from former McLaren bosses Ron Dennis or Martin Whitmarsh, on how they handled Prost and Senna and later Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton, might be fruitful. 'Lando himself will have to show his character to overcome this episode,' said Stella. 'He has to make sure that he only takes the learnings, he only takes what will make him a stronger driver.' Piastri, on the other hand, has the luxury of five wins from 10 races, a normally-dominant car and a clear lead. For Norris, more of Sunday's self-destruction could open the way for other teams and drivers. McLaren failed to claim a podium for the first time this year, but still lead the constructors' championship by 175 from Mercedes. Their lack of ultimate pace in Montreal revealed a weakness that their rivals need to exploit by concentrating on more updates and more speed for the next 14 races instead of switching focus to 2026. Second placed Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing congratulates Race winner George Russell of Great Britain and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team in parc ferme during the F1 Grand Prix of Canada at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve on June 15, 2025 in Montreal, Quebec. — AFP pic Maturing Russell shows poise It may be too late for this year, but Russell's composed victory drive at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and his general demeanour suggested he has found the poise to build a serious title challenge. He did not give four-time champion Verstappen any opportunity and claimed his fourth career success. Mercedes now face the challenge of giving him a car to keep winning on a wider range of circuits. Red Bull's failed protest against Russell on Sunday night - for alleged improper driving behind the Safety Car — smacked of desperation at failing to land a punch in the race. Ferrari crisis is home made Lewis Hamilton's arrival at Ferrari this year has coincided with an uncompetitive car. Both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were disappointed again after a weekend scarred by talk of a 'crisis' at Maranello and harsh words. Leclerc blamed himself after finishing fifth. Hamilton struggled bravely to sixth after hitting a groundhog. The team closed ranks, recognising their problems are home-made and need time to fix. 'A long time,' according to Hamilton who, with seven driver titles, has recognised areas and issues that require managed change and improved relations with the Italian media. — AFP
Malay Mail
4 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Jorginho debuts as Flamengo defeat Esperance in Club World Cup opener ahead of Chelsea showdown
PHILADELPHIA, June 17 — Brazilian giants Flamengo set themselves up for a Club World Cup showdown with Chelsea by easing to a 2-0 win against Esperance of Tunisia in their opening game at the tournament on Monday. Goals either side of half time from Uruguayan international Giorgian de Arrascaeta and Luiz Araujo gave a dominant Flamengo — coached by former Chelsea player Filipe Luis — a deserved victory in the Group D clash in Philadelphia. Flamengo, who qualified for the tournament as a recent winner of the Copa Libertadores, fielded a strong side featuring several Brazil internationals and gave a debut to Italy midfielder Jorginho following his recent arrival from Arsenal. Jorginho will come up against former club Chelsea when the teams meet in their second match on Friday, with the Premier League club fresh from beating Los Angeles FC 2-0 earlier Monday. De Arrascaeta opened the scoring for the Rio de Janeiro outfit in the 17th minute at Lincoln Financial Field when he finished first time from a Luiz Araujo assist. That set off wild celebrations among the Flamengo fans, who made up the majority of the 25,797 crowd in a stadium which can hold close to 70,000. Flamengo had chances to increase their lead while Tunisian champions Esperance created little of note before their Algerian winger Youcef Belaili almost equalised midway through the second half. Shortly after that Flamengo scored again, as Luiz Araujo found a pocket of space in the box in the 70th minute, turned and curled a low shot into the far corner to make it 2-0. — AFP
