Chelsea Defeats LAFC in CWC Liam Delap Makes Debut

Liam Delap assisted in his Chelsea debut, and Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernández scored to lead the Blues to a 2-0 win over LAFC in each team's Group D opener at the Club World Cup in Atlanta on Monday.

Chelsea took the lead in the 34th minute when Neto collected a superb downfield ball from Nicolas Jackson before faking defender Ryan Hollingshead and striking past goalkeeper Hugo Lloris to score. 

The crucial insurance goal came in the 79th minute when Delap delivered a lovely cross to Fernández, who scored with a left-footed drive past Lloris from a few yards away.

It was Delap's first appearance for Chelsea since joining from Ipswich Town earlier in June.

Chelsea will play Flamengo in Philadelphia on Friday, while LAFC will face ES Tunis in Nashville later that day. 

Following a first half in which Chelsea received two yellow cards, the two teams were separated as Neto and Denis Bouanga engaged in a jaw-dropping battle.

Chelsea nearly doubled their lead in the 54th minute when Neto's entry pass to Jackson in the area was headed toward the goal, but Timothy Tillman denied the attempt with a header redirect.

Bouanga had a fantastic chance to equalize the score in the 57th minute, but Robert Sánchez saved his shot from the left side of the box.