Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca was killed after a two-hour weather delay disrupted the last-16 club World Cup victory of his team on Benfica on Saturday, suggesting that the United States were not a suitable country for the competition-a year before it is due to the Heren World Cup.
Chelsea defeated Benfica 4-1 in extra time to qualify for the quarterfinals after a match that ended four hours and 39 minutes after the start, after a two-hour break due to a storm warning.
It was the sixth time that a match was stopped at the 32-club tournament due to the risk of lightning.
«For me personally it is not football,» Maresca told a press conference. «I think it’s a joke. It’s not football.
“I can understand that you have to suspend the game for safety reasons. But if you suspend seven or eight games, this means that this is probably not the right place to do this competition.
«It’s a fantastic competition. It’s the club World Cup, the best clubs are here,» he added.
«But six or seven games suspended? It is not normal. In a world cup they have suspended there? Probably zero. In a European (championship), how many games? Zero. There is a problem.»
Related: Chelsea beats 10-man Benfica 4-1 to set up quarter-final versus Palmeiras
FIFA, who organized the tournament, was not immediately available for comment.
Chelsea was 1-0 up when the players were asked to leave the field and playing only two hours later.
«The game was very good for 85 minutes, then we stopped two hours, and when we started it was a completely different game. It is not the same game because you break the pace,» said Maresca.
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