Chelsea on Tuesday beat Esperance of Tunisia 3-0 to set up a FIFA Club World Cup last-16 tie against SL Benfica, who earlier defeated Bayern Munich 1-0, as furnace-link heat and the threat of thunder and lightning wreak havoc at the tournament.
Elsewhere, minnows Auckland City claimed a memorable draw against Boca Juniors, while Los Angeles bowed out of the tournament with a stalemate against Flamengo.
In Charlotte, Andreas Schjelderup scored the only goal for Benfica in their Group C clash with Bayern in front of 33,287 fans, finishing first-time from a cutback by his fellow Norwegian Fredrik Aursnes in the 13th minute.
Photo: Reuters
The German champions, who left the likes of Harry Kane and Michael Olise on the bench at kickoff, were unable to come back in sweltering afternoon conditions in heat wave-hit North Carolina.
It was Benfica’s first win in 14 competitive meetings with Bayern and it meant they finished first and would next play Group D runners-up Chelsea in Charlotte in the last-16 on Saturday.
Bayern finished second and so are on Sunday to go to Miami to take on Brazilian giants Flamengo, with a potential quarter-final against European champions Paris Saint-Germain awaiting.
Photo: Reuters
“You could see that it was really tough conditions, so respect to both teams for that,” Bayern coach Vincent Kompany said.
Boca’s 1-1 draw against Auckland became the fifth match of the tournament to experience a lengthy delay due to public safety regulations used in the US that mandate play is halted whenever lightning is within 16.1km of a stadium.
Play stopped for almost an hour. When the action restarted, not a drop of rain had fallen at Geodis Park.
Chelsea eased through to their meeting with Benfica with a clinical 3-0 win over Esperance at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca on Monday cut short his team’s training session, as the City of Brotherly Love baked in temperatures of 37.2°C.
Flamengo, who had already assured themselves the top spot in the section after wins over Chelsea and Esperance, wrapped up their first-round campaign with a 1-1 draw against already eliminated Los Angeles in Orlando, Florida.
With a brutal heat wave blanketing swathes of the eastern US, adapting to the weather has become a key focus for coaches and players.
Borussia Dortmund took the unusual step of leaving their substitutes in the dressing room for the first half of their game against Mamelodi Sundowns in Cincinnati on Sunday, rather than have them sitting on the bench in blazing sunshine.
Dortmund coach Niko Kovac said the weather could ultimately shape the destiny of the tournament.
“I think that this tournament will be decided not by the best team, but the team that can adapt to these weather conditions the best. They will probably win this tournament,” he said.
While cooling breaks midway through each half have become standard during the tournament, Dortmund, like other teams, are taking extra steps to mitigate the heat and humidity.
“Our boys are very well taken care of by our doctors and the medical staff,” Kovac said. “We have very cold towels. We put them in ice baths. The boys also need to cool down their legs and their feet in cold water and ice baths.”
The experience of the Club World Cup is likely a preview of what can be expected at next year’s men’s FIFA World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico.
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