Chelsea news: Lukaku praised for winner in semi-final, despite 'nervous' Blues performance
- Sean Fisher
- 10 February 2022
Chelsea assistant manager Zsolt Low says his side 'felt the pressure' of the Club World Cup on Wednesday.
The Blues booked their spot in the Club World Cup final after a tense 1-0 win over Al-Hilal on Wednesday, with £98million signing Romelu Lukaku scoring the only goal.
The European Champions were forced to play the game without head coach Thomas Tuchel, who remains in London following a positive Covid-19 test.
Lukaku, who faced criticism earlier this season for saying his heart remained in Milan, pounced on Yasir Alshahrani's moment of misfortune in the first half to open the scoring.
The decisive moment! 🙌#ClubWorldCuppic.twitter.com/tyLpj002i8.
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) February 9, 2022
The Blues continued to pile on the pressure in the second half, but Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal remained resolute.
Eventually, the Belgian's goal proved to be enough to send Chelsea to the Club World Cup final, but their performance left much to be desired.
Following the result, Chelsea assistant Zsolt Low praised Lukaku's impact on the game, and hopes that he can build on his performance in the final.
"Everyone's very happy he scored, he fought very hard and tried hard in the game," said Low.
"That's why we give him the chance all the time. We hoped for a bit of luck to score today.
"He's very happy, we're very happy and hope he continues and scores in the final."
Another key performer for Chelsea was in-form goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, who produced two vital saves to protect Chelsea's lead.
Edouard Mendy has recently returned to the squad following a successful AFCON campaign with Senegal, and now the duo will both be vying for the No.1 spot in Saturday's final.
Love to see it. 💛#ClubWorldCup pic.twitter.com/mMXZCpepuh
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) February 9, 2022
But it was the outfield performance that concerned Low more, with the Hungarian coach suggesting his players were nervous.
"We worked very hard, we missed a bit of freedom and rhythm," said Low.
"We started a little nervous, it was not easy. We fought hard for it to find a solution.
"My opinion is the solution was there but we didn't find it easily. We missed a bit of rhythm in this game but we fought hard to get the result and reach the final.
"This competition is very important for the club. The players felt the pressure and that's why we failed to find the easy solution and score goals.
"The players did well. We didn't concede and had a lot of opportunities to score a second."
Regardless of their shaky performance, Chelsea found a way to grind out a result, meaning they'll now face Brazlian side Palmeiras in the final, where both teams are gunning for a first Club World Cup title.
However, with the final scheduled to take place on Saturday evening at 16:30 GMT, Chelsea remain uncertain about whether Tuchel will be present.
"We hope Thomas can travel as soon as possible," said Low.
"As I said before he'll follow the government rules. He's in self-isolation now and doing a Covid PCR test every day.
"Once he tests negative it opens the possibility to travel.
"Every day we wait for it. We wish he can come to the enjoy the final.
"We talked to Thomas at half-time and had a good conversation. He had the same feeling that we were a little nervous and had a lot of easy ball losses.
"We talked about telling the guys to calm down, find the rhythm and not fight so hard for solutions.
"We had a good conversation. After the game we've not spoken yet; maybe a bit later we can talk to each other."
