Sydney FC vs. Chelsea: Score and Twitter Reaction to Post-Season Friendly

Loic Remy scored a wonder goal to give Chelsea a 1-0 win over Sydney FC during Tuesday's post-season friendly, as the Blues showed little signs of fatigue with the summer break right around the corner.

Sydney played well but couldn't unlock Chelsea's defence, which was its usual dominant self, and one flash from Remy was enough to decide the match in favour of Jose Mourinho's side. Eden Hazard dazzled the Australian crowd, and plenty of youngsters got their chance to show they're ready to contribute heading into next season.  

For many Australian fans, this was their first opportunity to watch the Blues in person, and it's only normal players like John Mikel Obi were looking forward to  playing this match, per Chelsea's official Twitter account:

Hazard started the match in a central role, moving youngster Jeremie Boga, who replaced Ruben Loftus-Cheek in the starting XI at the last second, out to the wing:

Diego Costa nearly opened the match with a bang, showing off nifty footwork to dance between several Sydney defenders before nearly blasting the ball into the net. The Spain international clearly felt good, combining with Hazard and Nemanja Matic just minutes later.

Sydney weren't overwhelmed by the Premier League champions, however, and they showed some quality of their own. Shane Smeltz nearly found himself on the end of a good cross, but the Blues defence read the danger well.

This match may have been a friendly, but the hosts didn't hold back one bit. Fox Sports Football couldn't help themselves:

Remy should have scored after some great work from Hazard, but the France international fired an angled shot across goal as the Sydney defence were reduced to spectators. Rhyan Grant then found some space to produce a delightful cross, but the Sky Blues failed to make the most of it.

Just as the hosts started to grow comfortable in the match, Chelsea opened the score. Remy darted inside before unleashing a marvelous blast into the top corner, to the delight of the Blues' Twitter account:

Here's the goal, courtesy of Soccer St.

"

Loic Remy producing his annual stunner. pic.twitter.com/ySsdscRit2

— Soccer St. (@SoccerSt_) June 2, 2015"

SBS Television's Craig Foster was impressed:

Smeltz nearly equalised straight away, but his shot was cleared off of the line by Branislav Ivanovic. Boga and Costa came close to doubling the Blues' lead, with chances suddenly coming fast. But the pace soon dropped, as Costa was taken off for Loftus-Cheek. The final minutes of the first half played out without any major events, apart from Mikel Obi requiring treatment after picking up a knock.

Sydney FC's Twitter account was happy with the performance of both teams at half-time:

The hosts were determined to find a quick goal in the second half, but the first chance fell to Chelsea, as Loftus-Cheek forced Vedran Janjetovic into making a fine stop. Alex Brosque should have equalised in the 57th minute, but he somehow managed to put the ball wide after a brilliant team move.

Sydney started to put more and more pressure on the Chelsea goal, and Petr Cech showed he's still one of the world's best by denying Terry Antonis. The Australian's Ray Gatt loved what he was seeing from the 21-year-old:

Hazard did well to guide the ball to Remy, whose headed effort was saved off of the line by Alex Gersbach. During that chance, Loftus-Cheek signaled to the Chelsea bench that he had picked up a knock to his back, and he was replaced by Jordan Houghton.

The Belgium international continued to trouble the Australian defence, and Sydney, in turn, had no answer for Chelsea's blue wall. The hosts had plenty of possession during the second half, but they lacked creativity in the final third.

Foster couldn't get over how great Hazard was after the winger went on another run through the Sydney defence:

The Blues comfortably worked the ball around in the final 10 minutes, frustrating Sydney's attackers in the same way they frustrated teams around the Premier League all season. Seb Ryall thought he had equalised just before full time, but the official had stopped play by the time the ball hit the net.

The hosts made a solid impression against one of Europe's finest teams, but ultimately, the gulf in class was plain to see. Antonis might have gained a few European suitors with his great performance, and the youngster could be in for a busy summer.

Chelsea didn't disappoint their Australian fans by going into holiday-mode prematurely, and Hazard in particular dazzled throughout the match. The Blues have earned their summer holiday, but it's great to see they showed up for their fans one more time instead of mailing in their performance.

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