Olivier Giroud broke the deadlock in Istanbul to give Chelsea the lead against Liverpool in the 2019 Super Cup.
After an eventful start – during which Sadio Mane felt that he should have been awarded a penalty when his bicycle kick struck the hand of Andreas Christensen – the French veteran handed Chelsea the advantage.
He owed much to new signing Christian Pulisic, who enjoyed an electric opening half.
Picking up the ball in midfield, the United States international drove forward, escaping the attentions of Fabinho.
Rather than shoot, Pulisic then slipped the ball across the face of goal, where Giroud was waiting.
The Frenchman elected to shoot first time – angling his shot across the face of goal and beating Liverpool’s back-up goalkeeper Adrian.
The goal was enough to see Chelsea head into the break with a 1-0 lead.
