Chelsea’s pre-season friendly against Malaysian side descends into farce – with players leaving pitch and fans denied penalty shootout that was ‘written in the contract’
Chelsea’s pre-season friendly against Johor Darul Ta’zim of Malaysia ended in bizarre fashion after opposition players left the field against an apparent agreement.
The Blues were playing their second friendly game of the weekend at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium, with the match finishing 3-3 following what was, at times, an ill-tempered affair.
Liam Delap had scored twice for the Blues, with an own goal in the 89th minute ensuring Xabi Alonso’s second-string side drew the match.
After 90 minutes, supporters inside the ground waited for a penalty shootout, as has been the way with a number of games in pre-season – but that never happened.
Johor Darul Ta’zim opted to leave the field rather than prepare for the spot kick, with Chelsea head of first team operations, Kevin Campello, heard saying it was ‘written in the contract’.
The shootout, though, never took place, with no official explanation as to why.
Chelsea were due to take on Johor Darul Ta’zim of Malaysia in a penalty shootout after their friendly on Sunday
The Blues were left confused as their opponents left the field after full-time against an apparent agreement
Shootouts have been taking place in a number of games even when there is a positive result in 90 minutes, with Arsenal beating Borussia Dortmund on penalties at the Emirates on Sunday despite losing the game 3-2.
Not many first-choice players had played in the game, with the likes of Estevao and Liam Delap some of the only senior pros involved.
Midfielder Dario Essugo captained the side, after another team had beaten Ruben Amorim’s AC Milan 3-0 the day before.
That team included the likes of Cole Palmer and Moises Caicedo, while Joao Pedro scored twice in the game to continue his impressive pre-season form.
The Blues will take on Spanish side Real Sociedad next Saturday in their final pre-season game, before visiting Fulham for their first match of the new season the following week.
