“It takes a lot” – Reece James on the biggest challenge of late night win | OneFootball

Chelsea beat Benfica in a crazy game on Saturday night that featured all kinds of strange moments both on and off the field.

Speaking after full time, captain Reece James reflected on the 90 minute storm delay which turned what looked to be a routine victory into something very different in Charlotte. His free kick had given his team what looked like a win, but it all went very sideways from there.

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James on “difficult game” in strange circumstances

Reece James celebrates with fans in Charlotte. (Photo by Buda Mendes/Getty Images)

“We’ve come a long way [as a team]. It’s difficult to be so close to the end of the match and then have a kick in the teeth,” the captain said in quotes picked up by the club’s official website.

“To pick yourself up, brush yourself down and score a few goals probably shows how far we’ve come, and everyone has played a part today.

“It was a very difficult game with a lot of interruptions. The climate wasn’t the best, the pitch wasn’t the best, it was hard to play, and we got into 85 minutes, and we stopped for a long period of time. It takes a lot out of the players to cool down and then restart that engine again, but we’re happy we got the job done.”

Chelsea continue to impress and grow together as a team

All of these wins – especially those in strange circumstances – are helping this team grow together as a unit. They’re now on a real roll when you consider the good form to end the season plus the Conference League win.

This tournament can already be considered a success, and we just have to beat Palmeiras to make the semi finals now.