Blowing a kiss: Pedro Neto celebrates opening the scoring for Chelsea against LAFC in their Club World Cup clash
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Pedro Neto has explained his goal celebration for Chelsea against LAFC, insisting that such feisty exchanges are “part of the game”.
The Portuguese winger was arguably the Blues’ best player as they opened their Club World Cup campaign with a 2-0 victory over Major League Soccer (MLS) opposition at a sparsely-populated Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Monday night, getting the breakthrough in the first half as he raced onto a through ball from Nicolas Jackson and checked inside with a brilliant turn before firing past Hugo Lloris and into the bottom corner.
Neto was a threat all night for Chelsea out on the right flank, showcasing his speed and skill and also slamming against the crossbar with a long-range effort that proved to be the last kick of the game in second-half stoppage time.
The former Wolves star also appeared to be involved in some feisty exchanges with LAFC players in the first half of the Group D curtain-raiser in Georgia, with tempers flaring with Denis Bouanga after the half-time whistle and Neto having also previously blown a kiss to an opposing player following some initial aggro as he celebrated his 34th-minute goal.
Asked who he was blowing a kiss to after the game, Neto told DAZN: “No, it’s part of the game you know.
“I don’t want to speak about it because it’s part of the game. In the end we spoke both of us, we were getting to each other in the game. In the end we spoke and it’s okay.”
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Chelsea’s win over LAFC took them to the top of Group D ahead of Flamengo meeting Tunisian side Esperance de Tunis at Lincoln Financial Field later on Monday night.
The Blues face the Brazilian giants next in Philadelphia - where they have based themselves for the tournament - on Friday evening, before meeting ES Tunis at the same venue on June 24.