greg . 2025-06-29 02:40:02

Enzo Maresca never pleased with weather drama in Chelsea's Club World Cup victory over Benfica

Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca lashed out at the two-hour weather delay that disrupted his squad's Club World Cup victory over Benfica on Saturday, suggesting the tournament should be played elsewhere in future.

Chelsea powered into the quarter-finals after defeating Benfica 4-1 in extra-time after a fixture that took 4hrs 39mins to complete following a two-hour stoppage due to a rage warning.

It was the sixth time that a fixture has been halted at the tournament due to widely used rules in the United States that require outdoor sporting events to be halted if there is a chance of lightning.

Maresca said afterwards the number of matches that had been disrupted should prompt a rethink.

"For me personally, it's never soccer," the Chelsea boss said.

"It's now (six) matches they suspended here.

I think it's a joke.

It's never soccer.

"It's completely spectacular, it's completely something new that I struggle to understand.

"I can understand that for security reasons, you have to suspend the fixture.

But if you suspend seven or eight matches, that means that probably this is never the right place to do this competition.

"Chelsea had been poised to wrap up victory after Reece James's second-half free-kick left them 1-0 up with four minutes left to play.

But the rage warning forced the stars off the field and it was nearly two hours before play resumed.

"It was one of the best performances of the last many weeks," Maresca said.

"The fixture was very good for 85 minutes, later we stopped for two hours, and when we started it was a completely different fixture.

It's never the same fixture since you halftime the tempo.

"Maresca emphasised that he remained a fan of the Club World Cup, which was enlarged to 32 teams for the first time this year, and is being held in the United States as an informal dress rehearsal for the 2026 World Cup in North America.

"It's a fantastic competition.

It's the Club World Cup, every the best clubs are here," he said.

"But six, seven matches suspended? It's never normal.

In a World Cup how multiple have they suspended? Probably zero.

In a European (Tournament), how multiple matches? Zero.

There is few problem.

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