well the atmosphere has been building up all day long and we're almost ready for kickoff here
at stamford bridge i'm derek ray and i'm joined here on the gantry for commentary by stuart robson
and this is where it all starts in the uefa champions league the group stage
and match day one my goodness so much to look forward to
it is chelsea up against benfica well i'm looking forward to this one derek it's so important you
get off to a good start so let's hope both sides go for the win here and we get an exciting match
uh
and a look at the chelsea starting eleven antonio rudiger plays alongside thiago silva
in central defence georgina plays with ngono kante in the center of the park
and handed the task of playing up front today romelu lukaku
oh here's the initial 11 for benfica nicolas otamendi starts with jan vertonghen at the back
and on this tactical setup they have just the one player in attack
it's the opening match day champions league group stage match day one underway
given away by chelsea
diego gonzalez and the attack looks promising
good players in firing us in using his body's a good effect
and chelsea have given us away
rafa good visualization and execution
not fantastic defending let's see if it helps the opposition
well it came to nothing in the end
well who will be the player to decide the outcome to determine the course of events no reason at
all why it won't be this man stewart what do you anticipate seeing from him well very in the last
they've got to score and a goal they start as they need to continue they make the opening statement
well here you can see what a good goal this is he hits it so
cleanly and the keeper has no chance that's a great strike
let's see what happens next making use of his physical strength to hang on to it
position now to the front post the quick one two and they've turned this game on its head
well here's the replay and it all starts off with that cross into the box
just begging for a teammate to get on the end of it and it's a comfortable finish in the end
which is made to look so easy it's a lovely goal
really effective shielding under pressure going about
as defensive business with a minimum of fuss corte
mount
this looks promising could pick out a teammate and a harmless cross gobbled up
rafa
yarmchuck excellent use of the ball as they make their way forward
he'll be delighted to have won the ball having made that difficult challenge
not a good pass
banner
well they get the ball once more
rafa
and intercepts again and players waiting in the center oh mario that's a great stop
well his reflexes are so good there that's a fantastic stop
he's tripping in the corner and he's kept it out fully stretched somehow reaching it
played over only failed to get it away properly
threat over for now it seems
timo verna
crossing opportunity and as clear as lines
well approaching half time on the home side very much in charge here stuart
your thoughts yes it's been a really energetic display from them so far
the passing's been sharp the movement from the front players has been excellent
and the finishing has been clinical they will certainly be happy going in at half time
and given the defenders touch the referee says corner
playing it in not really the ideal clearance
rudiger
using space on the opposite flank now magnificent challenge from otamendi
roman garenchuk
threaded through by lukaku and they could do damage
well let's see this again the vision to play this through ball is superb and once he gets
onto it he just smashes it past the keeper with great technique what an emphatic finish that is
well you've got to say an incredible first half performance
that score line tells you all you need to know
and with it mario and the first 45 minutes have come and gone here at stamford bridge
well romelu lukaku is having a terrific match for himself
out there a true handful stewart well he's been brilliant today
his skill his movement his goals what a good performance and he's not finished just yet
and so the second half of this champions league group stage match day one contest commences
grimaldo it's with maytay
addis safareovich
oh it's off the post
well i'm still amazed that stayed out he looks have done everything right didn't he
beautifully disguise ball oh incredible save and he snuffed out the danger
time for a change then
and there's the delivery just the clearance that was needed no two ways about it a wild wild
attempt well it's so hard to get this right and he just couldn't adjust his body quickly enough
james
corte now
timo verna marcos alonso
given away by chelsea
julian weigel
but he keeps going
good tackle it'll be a throw
pc
now we have 30 minutes to go
a chopping challenge and the referee has got to have a big think about it well deemed to have
been a cautionable offense well no question about it he deserved his book in there
well that didn't go exactly to plan and no wonder he's getting a few icy stairs
from his teammates yeah that's a complete waste he was never going to score from there
wonderful tackle
oh showing excellent vision rapha
chance to play us in quit thinking defensively aspirin
and they could face difficulties here chance maybe
vioner
this attack looks highly promising
georginio
lukaku
losing possession a bit easily
rapha a chance to whip it in
well if only he had time to run slightly better offside
now we're inside the final quarter of an hour now
and stuffing out the danger oh that's a super ball over the top
it's opening up for them oh wonderful well he reacts so quickly there that's a great save
playing it in any goalkeeper would accept corner kick deliveries like that every day
angola kante kante
the ball with marcos alonso
just now with jorginho well flinging himself as it
well as the second half draws to a close we can reflect on a very fine chelsea performance
well what can you say about this but strong hand on that one corner awarded
very few would lay a glove on them
well here it is again it's a well-delivered ball into the box and it ends up with a
fairly simple finish certainly not much the goalkeeper can do about that
a lopsided contest four nil
and unable to pick out a teammate and that'll be a throw
a ball with marcos alonso timo verna lukaku verna fed over towards the back post
what a lovely strike lethal piece of finishing drilled home with true conviction tremendous goal
well here it is again just look at the quality of the cross it's inch perfect but the keeper
should do better at his near post that's gone in far too easily that's not good goalkeeping
oh my goodness it's so one-sided five-nil in this match
so full time it is under morale boosting three points on the board to begin their
european campaign yeah that's a good win and a vital three
points another win next time out and they'll be in a great position
and a good performance as we've come to expect from angola conte
what did you make of what you saw from him well i have to say
that was impressive not just his goals but he's all round play he was excellent