Los Angeles FC manager Steve Cherundolo has been speaking about Chelsea following his side’s loss to the Blues in the Club World Cup.
Chelsea beat LAFC 2-0, with Pedro Neto and Enzo Fernandez both managing to get their names on the scoresheet.
Neto showed a lot of quality with his goal, leaving one LAFC defender for dead before slotting the ball past Hugo Lloris.
Cherundolo has now spoken about Chelsea’s overall quality and much more following their win at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Steve Cherundolo picks up on Chelsea’s structure
Chelsea’s quality was not the only thing Cherundolo noticed during Monday night’s Club World Cup fixture.
The 46-year-old also highlighted just how structured Chelsea are under Enzo Maresca.
Speaking after the full-time whistle, Cherundolo said: “Chelsea don’t change the way they play against anyone. They have a lot of quality and structure and can hurt you in different ways.”
Maresca will be happy with Neto’s contribution during the game, but the Chelsea manager knows he needs more than the Portugal international going forward.
Following Jadon Sancho’s exit, there is now a shortage of wide attackers at Chelsea, an issue that Maresca wants addressed.
Before the match, Maresca stated that Chelsea needed a new winger, saying: “We have Noni [Madueke], Pedro and Ty [Tyrique George] only as the proper wingers so something for sure is going to happen.”
With the transfer window open again, there could be some movement there soon. Interest in Borussia Dortmund’s Jamie Gittens remains, so the 20-year-old is one option for them.
Steve Cherundolo on whether Chelsea deserved win
In the end, Chelsea did not need Gittens to overcome LAFC, who were outclassed by the Blues, according to their manager.
“I think Chelsea won, deservingly so,” Cherundolo said. “We clawed our way back into the game and played a little better in the second half and had the odd chance to get the equaliser.
“I was happy with the way we played defensively but I think we conceded two transition goals which I wasn’t happy about. They decided the game with two moments of quality.”
Next up for Chelsea at the Club World Cup is a clash against Brazilian side Flamengo on Friday. In May, Joao Felix was actually linked with a move to Flamengo, a rumour that did not go down well with the Brazilian media.
Journalists in Brazil were critical of Felix amid the Flamengo links following his struggles at Chelsea and other European clubs.
As for LAFC, their next game is against Esperance Sportive de Tunis, who then play Chelsea next Wednesday. The Blues will be expected to beat the Tunisian side comfortably when they eventually face off.
