Soccer
Chelsea shine brightest when the pressure was on to reach semi-finals
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When Friday night's quarte-rfinal matchup took place between Chelsea and Palmeiras, live and free on , many fans were expecting a Chelsea victory and a berth in the semi-finals.
The notion almost didn't come to fruition.
After Chelsea got ahead at the 16' mark, Palmeiras came back to tie the game and controlled a good chunk of the second half. But Chelsea pulled through and scored at the 83' mark to notch a 2-1 victory from Lincoln Financial Stadium in Philadelphia, Pa.
The win puts Chelsea in the semi-finals on Tuesday when they square off against Fluminense.
Here are the key talking points coming from Chelsea vs. Palmeiras.
Chelsea vs. Palmeiras Match Highlights
Chelsea Delivered When It Mattered Most
Chelsea could have tucked their heads in and folded like a cheap tent when Palmeiras tied the game at one early in the second half.
Their momentum had been lost. For about 25 minutes, Palmeiras was the better team. They were more physical on each side of the ball, and had the ball in the offensive for the majority of that time.
It appeared the team from Brazil was going to score again at any time.
With time ticking away and inching closer to extra time, Chelsea began to regain their footing at around the 77' mark. Not wanting to play another 30 minutes, Chelsea went back to what they did in the first half and were pushing the pace and pressing Palmeiras.
Then at the 83' mark and with the lights shining the brightest, Chelsea's Malo Gusto put the ball in the net and the team from England hung on to secure the win.
When the chips are down, the great teams find a way to get the job done. And Chelsea did that on Friday evening to put themselves two wins away from winning the 2025 Club World Cup.
Estevao Vaults Onto The World Stage
Heading into the game with Chelsea, the soccer world already knew the talents that Estevao possessed, even at the age of 18.
At that age, a person is playing in college or their senior year in high school. Not Estevao, whose had a significant role with Palmerias and has a contract to play for Chelsea after the conclusion of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
Estevao gave his soon-to-be team a glimpse of what they could expect with an out-of-this-world goal that athletes twice his age couldn't pull off.
You could see after the game how much respect there is already between Estevao and his new teammates.
The future is bright for Chelsea, and it starts with Estevao.
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