DIDIER DROGBA and Frank Lampard scored to give Chelsea a 2-0 victory over Inter Milan on Tuesday night in a soccer exhibition at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California.
The game was part of the World Football Challenge (WFC), a series also involving AC Milan and Mexico City’s Club America.
World-class forward Didier Drogba didn’t wait long to give the 81,224 fans a photo opportunity.
Standing more than 30 meters away from goal, he struck a right-footed shot that seemed to surprise Inter Milan goalkeeper Vid Belec. The ball snuck past Belec’s diving attempt, giving Chelsea a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute.
Meanwhile, Inter Milan struggled to find its rhythm offensively. The Italian League Serie A champion registered only two shots in the first half to Chelsea’s seven.
“We did everything to create chances to score goals,” Drogba said. “We’re really happy.”
After clearly dominating the pace in the opening half, the Blues were at it again to begin the second.
Just minutes following the second whistle, Inter Milan’s Ivan Ramiro Cordoba was charged with a hand ball inside the box, presenting Chelsea with a penalty kick. Midfielder Lampard capitalized, depositing the ball into the net past Belec, who was fooled and dove to the opposite side of the goal.
Inter Milan’s offensive attack was without star striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who led Serie A in scoring last season, for most of the game. Ibrahimovic entered the match to a loud ovation in the second half, but by then it was too late.
“It was really important to play against Inter,” Chelsea midfielder John Mikel Obi said.
Inter Milan was coming off a tough, overtime loss to Club America at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto on Sunday. The Nerazurri did not make the trip down empty handed though, managing to earn two points by scoring a goal and forcing penalty kicks.
With the victory, Chelsea moved into first place in the WFC standings.
(SD-Agencies)