Pedro Neto, Cucurella react to message from Chelsea ace Levi Colwill after LAFC win
Pedro Neto and Marc Cucurella reacted to a message from Chelsea defender Levi Colwill after the win over Los Angeles FC.
The Blues began their Club World Cup (CWC) not against Club Leon as originally planned, but against MLS side LAFC.
The Mexican side was barred from entering the competition due to FIFA’s rules on multi-club ownership, and the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) rejected their appeal [The Guardian].
Things began awkwardly, with FIFA insisting on bringing out each player individually to a smattering of applause before the match, and this seemed to have an impact on the Blues’ players at the start of the match.
Enzo Maresca’s side started slowly against their opponents, but goals from Pedro Neto and Real Madrid target Enzo Fernandez eventually gave Chelsea a 2-0 win over LAFC.
Levi Colwill shares message with Chelsea fans after victory
Following the win, Colwill took to Instagram to share a message with Chelsea fans that read: “Good W to start”.
The post was then liked by the young defender’s teammate Neto and Cucurella, showing support for the English centre-back.
Enzo Maresca plays it safe against LAFC
Football Insider Verdict
Maresca was rewarded for fielding a full-strength Chelsea side against LAFC with a 2-0 win, but some of the same issues from last season reared their head.
Noni Madueke continues to look indecisive at left-wing and should have opened the scoring in the early stages.
Estevao was named as player of the match for Palmeiras in their 0-0 draw with Porto, and Maresca may now be lamenting the decision to allow his young star to remain with the Brazilian side for the CWC.
Another issue is who to partner with Colwill in the heart of the Blues’ defence. Tosin Adarabioyo has been a serviceable understudy to Wesley Fofana, but with Aaron Anselmino, new signing Mamadou Sarr and academy starlet Josh Acheampong on the bench, it was a surprise not to see one of the youngsters be given a chance against the MLS side.
Up next will be the much tougher task of Brazilian side Flamengo, and it will be interesting to see whether Maresca sticks with the side that claimed victory over LAFC, or if the Italian boss decides to field a more unorthodox starting XI.