Job done! Chelsea kicked started the Club World Cup tournament with a routine win against Los Angles FC

This very much felt like a pre season game but this was expected after 3 weeks off so this was very much dusting off cobwebs.

A good start to the campaign leaving us in a solid starting position to qualify for the round of 16

Robert Sanchez- 7

Distribution was good to say despite the frustration he causes amongst us fans. Made a couple of important saves especially in the 2nd half, other than that, quiet day for the chelsea number 1.

Reece James- 7

Solid 1v1 defending, strong tackling too and used his body well to block off the wingers. Still great to see his minutes managed.

Tosin- 6

Great reaction to the save from sanchez to stop LAFC crawling back into the game from 2-0 down. Utilised his height well, by aerially battling Giroud.

Levi Colwill- 6.5

Carrying his strong mid may form into this club world cup with a solid performance at the back. Vocal and a leader at the back tailored with great reading of the danger from the opposition. Passing (short and long), could’ve been slightly better.

Marc Cucurella- 5.5

Looked knackered and uncomfortable for majority of the game, his lack of aggression going into tackles wasn’t the same as we know. Definitely needs back up and a rest!

Moises Caicedo- 7.5

Our player of the year carried over his 2025 form into this game with excellent tackling and duels. Completely dominated the LAFC midfield and rightfully so came off early because he needs protection at all costs.

Romeo Lavia- 6.5

Phenomenal line breaking passes as usual and very accurate with his short passes. His ground duels were also a standout within the first half.

Noni Madueke- 2.5

Poor on the ball and movement off the ball was lethargic, didnt go past his opponent once and a frustrating performance overall.

Cole Palmer- 5.5

Tried to make things happen in front of goal, had a great chance in the 2nd half from a clever routined corner and a pre assist for the 2nd goal, other than that very quiet for his standards.

Pedro Neto- 8.5 (MOTM👏)

Great run and movement and a fake shot to send the defender, shifted onto his left foot, 1-0 chels! Extremely positive whenever he received the ball and grew in confidence the more the game went on and work rate was top notch!

Nicolas Jackson- 6.5

Great hold up play and assist for the goal for Neto. Link up play was decent and looks like this Delap signing will give Jackson more motivation to prove why he should be our starting striker.

Subs:

Enzo Fernandez- 7.5

Brilliant movement in and around the box, acting as a supporting striker at times with a cool and composed finish to stroke it into the net from delaps cross. Great passes to switch play first time and start attacks.

Liam Delap- 7

Great movement and run off the defenders shoulder, strong run down the line and a brilliant cross into the box for enzo to make it 2-0. Solid debut cameo capped off with an assist, its going to be exciting to see what else he can bring us in attack!

Tyrique George- 2.5

Not much impact when he came on, seems like he struggles to understand the attributes of a winger and a loan move could do him well to be honest.

Malo Gusto- 2

Positionally caught out a few times and fortunate to not be punished with better opposition finishing. What has happened to Malo Gusto….

Christopher Nkunku N/A

Dario Essugo N/A

Enzo Maresca – 7

Great to see Maresca manage the likes of Lavia and Reece James minutes going into this tournament.

Tweaked things at half time with a lot of changes and good to see him utilise the squad.

However, keeping on caicedo and cucurella for a long amount of time was the only down side. Overall, did enough to grab us our first win in the group stages, onto the next… UTC!