By Raleigh McPherson
SEATTLE
(TheSportsNext) July 20, 2012: The English Premier League powerhouse and
UEFA champions Chelsea FC started their EPL pre-season World Tour with a clinical
performance on Wednesday in front of 53,309 fans chanting for the local team
Seattle Sounders.
The Seattle Sounders did challenge Chelsea FC hard as they
leveled back at 2-2 in the first half, thanks to a brace by Fredy Montero but
the English Premier League club showed great quality to seal the victory with
two more goals.
In the end, Seattle Sounders players and fans resorted to
clap for a sterling show put up by the British soccer side and also appreciated
the way the home team challenged them.
With this game, Seattle Sounders’ veteran soccer player
Roger Levesque called it a day as he waved to the fans placed in the CenturyLink
Field before leaving the field for one final time.
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| Roger Levesque |
In the end, Chelsea FC prevailed with the final score of 4-2
against the Seattle Sounders to kick off their World Tour in an emphatic
fashion.
Chelsea FC manager Roberto Di Matteo told reporters, "I
know that the fans here in Seattle are crazy about soccer and they created a
wonderful atmosphere”.
In a match that had all the six goals scored in the first
half, Chelsea FC went in front in only the third minute of the match when
forward Romelu Lukaku shrugged off Sounders defender Jeff Parke to give his
side the advantage. Midfielder Eden Hazard took only eight more minutes to
double the lead for the Chelsea FC as the home fans started feeling the
disappointment.
However, the home team struck back strongly with forward
Fredy Montero pounced on a defence frailty by the Chelsea FC defenders in the
14th minute and took his side back into contention. The game was not
over yet and Fredy Monetro proved his worth once again as his long-range shot defeated
goalkeeper Henrique Hilario straight into the net in the 32nd minute
of the match.
Seattle Sounders looked the better of the two sides in the
first half and had a 10-9 advantage over Chelsea FC in the first half. They
looked like taking the lead every now and then but failed to execute the chances.
However, Chelsea FC tightened the noose on their American
opponents and took only five minutes to seal the advantage for good with the
help of two goals one by Marko Marin in 40th minute before Romelu
Lukaku struck his second goal of the night to make it 4-2 in Chelsea’s favor.
The second half failed to produce even a single goal as it
proved a stark contrast of the first half but both teams as well as the fans
present in the stadium enjoyed the level of competition.
Seattle Sounders coach Sigi Schmid told reporters, "Defensively,
I think we got caught napping on counterattacks, on quick-cut turnovers. Our
transition wasn't very good and I think there were a couple of individual
mistakes. There's still a difference (between Chelsea and MLS opposition). The
speed of play is a little bit faster, for sure, especially the speed of play
from a standpoint of when balls turnover. And then the quality — that's why the
value of the teams is drastically different."
The UEFA Champions Chelsea FC will now travel to New York to
play their next game of the tour against French soccer club Paris Saint-Germain
at Yankee Stadium on Sunday. Chelsea FC will then take on the MLS All-Stars on
July 25 before locking horns with AC Milan of Italian Serie A on July 28.
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| Chelsea FC vs Seattle Sounders FC |
Manager Di Matteo refrained from launching Ashley Cole an
Florent Malouda in the World Tour opener but the good news for Chelsea is that
their star players John Terry, Raul Meireles, and Fernando Torres are joining
the team before their next games on the East Coast. It is important to mention
here that Juan Mata is not with the team on their World Tour owing to national
duty with Spain at the London 2012.
Chelsea FC Team included Henrique Hilario (Jamal Blackman,
46th), Branislav Ivanovic (George Saville, 64th), David Luiz (Gary Cahill,
46th), Paulo Ferreira (Todd Kane, 64th), Nathaniel Chalobah (Sam Hutchinson,
46th), John Obi Mikel (Michael Essien, 46th), Eden Hazard (Gael Kakuta, 64th),
Josh McEachran (Frank Lampard, 46th), Marko Marin (Kevin De Bruyne, 46th),
Yossi Benayoun (Ramires, 46th), Romelu Lukaku (Lucas Piazon, 64th).
Seattle Sounders FC team included Bryan Meredith (Josh Ford,
46th), Zach Scott (Adam Johansson, 71st), Jeff Parke (Patrick Ianni, 61st),
Jhon Kennedy Hurtado, Leo Gonzalez (Marc Burch, 71st), Mauro Rosales (Andy
Rose, 61st), Brad Evans (Sammy Ochoa, 71st), Osvaldo Alonso (Steve Zakuani,
82nd), Alvaro Fernandez (Servando Carrasco, 75th), Fredy Montero (Mike Seamon,
82nd), Eddie Johnson (Roger Levesque, 65th).
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