Chelsea's Maresca slams 'joke' Club World Cup weather delays

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca questioned the choice of the United States as host of the Club World Cup and branded the two-hour weather delay in his team's round-of-16 win over Benfica as "a joke."

The Blues set up a quarterfinal tie against Palmeiras with a 4-1 victory after extra time in a game that featured the second-longest stoppage due to weather in the competition.

Chelsea were leading 1-0 through Reece James' 64th-minute free kick before Slovenian referee Slavko Vincic stopped the match due to lightning in the area with four minutes remaining.

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After the resumption -- by which time many of the 25,929 crowd had left -- Benfica were awarded a stoppage-time penalty for handball by Malo Gusto. Ángel Di María equalised from the spot to force an additional 30 minutes.

Following Benfica winger's Gianluca Prestianni's 92nd-minute red card, Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall all struck in extra time but Maresca was left seething about the logistical challenges.

Saturday's game was the sixth Club World Cup match to suffer a weather delay.

"We didn't concede nothing, we created chances enough to win the game," Maresca told reporters.

"And then after the break, the game changed completely. I think for me personally it's not football. It's already seven, eight, nine games that they suspended. I think it's a joke to be honest, it's not football. It's not for us. You cannot be inside [for so long].

"It's completely something new but I struggle to understand. I can understand that for security reasons, you have to suspend the game. But if you suspend seven, eight games, that means that probably is not the right place to do this competition."

Pushed on whether the stoppages were damaging for the competition, Maresca continued: "Please, don't misunderstand me. I said it's a fantastic competition. It's a Club World Cup. It's top. We are happy to be in the last eight. We are happy to win all these kind of things.

"But something happens, six, seven games suspended, probably the one[s] that they decide, they need a reason, because it's not normal to suspend a game. In a World Cup, how many games are suspended? Zero, probably. In Europe, how many games? Zero.

"We are here, two weeks, they're already suspended six, seven games. There is some problem for me personally.

"But I'm talking as a manager. Because when you are two hours inside, you try to keep them in the game, but for two hours, they are speaking with the family outside for safety reasons. They are eating something, they are playing, they are laughing. How can you keep them two hours inside, focused? It's a joke.

"That's why I said it. Then we are happy. We are happy to be here. We are happy to be in this competition. But it's something that is not normal."