Chelsea beat Suwon Bluewings

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May 20, 2005 20:23 IST

A cool Joe Cole strike gave Chelsea a 1-0 win over South Korean champions Suwon Bluewings in a friendly on Friday.

Cole scored from close range after being put through one-on-one with Bluewings goalkeeper Lee Won-jae in the 15th minute.

Chelsea's Jiri Jarosik also came close late in the first half, steering the ball just wide of the post from deep inside the box.

The English champions did not have it all their own way, however, with Bluewings' Brazilian striker Nadson a frequent threat and Kim Doo-hyun pulling the strings in midfield.

But the K-League champions were wasteful in their finishing when they were not confined to long-range efforts.

The London club agreed to play the friendly after signing a shirt sponsorship deal reported to be worth 50 million pounds ($91.73 million) last month with Korean mobile phone and electronics giant Samsung, the owners of the Bluewings.

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho had promised to field his strongest side, although the attack in particular was depleted by the absence of Didier Drogba, Mateja Kezman and Eidur Gudjohnsen.

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