Chelsea defeated Brazilian team Palmeiras on Friday night to advance to the FIFA Club World Cup semi-finals.
After 13 minutes, Cole Palmer opened the score, giving the Blues a strong start. Enzo Maresca maintained their slim lead into halftime, but Palmeiras quickly equalized through the tremendously talented Estevao, who will sign with the Blues following the competition.
With seven minutes left, Agustin Giay threw the ball in his own net to give Chelsea the lead again, proving they were not to be denied. The Premier League powerhouses hung on to secure their place in the final four, and Palmeiras had no time to tie the score.
Joao Pedro Makes Chelsea Debut vs Palmeiras
His highlights from the match have emerged
At Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field, Joao Pedro made his debut for his new team. The Brazilian, who joined the team earlier this week for £60 million from Brighton, is expected to do big things.
Pedro came on as a substitute for Liam Delap in the 53rd minute after starting the game on the bench. How did he perform, though? Check out his game highlights here.
Pedro’s numbers are remarkable to read. He received a 7.2 rating from Sofacore for his performance, which was higher than the 6.4 grade given to Liam Delap, the man he replaced.
The 23-year-old won two of his four ground duels, won one of his two aerial duels, completed 11/13 passes (85%), struck the mark with his one shot on goal, and was successful with both of his dribbling attempts.
Pedro’s performance greatly thrilled Chelsea supporters, who have been expressing their thoughts about their new star striker. “His all-around play and link-up are really impressive, and Joaõ Pedro might be the first choice striker we’ve been waiting for,” one person commented.
Strong, powerful, and full of energy, he has a battling attitude that is the closest we’ve ever seen in the Drogba. “Welcome, boy,” remarked another fan. One Chelsea fan wrote: “He really caught me off guard. If he can get back into his goal-scoring groove and continue to play well, he could end up being our best striker.” He already appears to be a better Jackson.
Another remarked: “He looks really impressive after just one day of training with the team.” Three days ago, bro was on vacation.
After the game, Pedro told Chelsea.com that he was happy with both the outcome and his own performance. He stated:
It’s a significant victory. It makes me very happy to come on and play the way I did because I was on vacation. I’m thrilled to have advanced to the next round, but we must now take it easy and concentrate on Fluminense. I believe I did what the manager asked me to do—play freely and give it my all. It’s critical that we advance to the following round.
On Tuesday, July 8, Chelsea will now take on Fluminense, another Brazilian team, in the semi-finals. Pedro will find the game particularly meaningful because he began his career with the Rio de Janeiro-based team.
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