Juventus hand Chelsea a 1-0 defeat in Hong Kong: Details
What's the story
Chelsea suffered a disappointing defeat against Juventus, losing 0-1 in their latest pre-season match in Hong Kong. The only goal of the match came from Edon Zhegrova's stunning second-half strike, which was a curling effort into the top left corner after he latched onto Kenan Yildiz's lay-off. Despite fielding a back four that Xabi Alonso has preferred for the upcoming season, Chelsea struggled to create clear-cut chances throughout the game.
Team absences
Chelsea's attacking threat hampered by absence of key players
Chelsea's attacking threat was also hampered by the absences of Morgan Rogers, Cole Palmer (who missed out with a minor injury), and Enzo Fernandez from the starting lineup.
Danny Welbeck shared striker duties with Joao Pedro in his first start for Chelsea, but they could only create one chance before halftime which went wide.
Mykhailo Mudryk made his first appearance since November 2024 after anti-doping proceedings were resolved.
Despite some promising moments from Geovany Quenda and Marco Palestra down the right flank, Chelsea struggled to create chances in the final third of the pitch.
Information
Chelsea's remaining three pre-season games
Chelsea have three pre-season games more ahead of their Premier League campaign versus Fulham on August 24. On Saturday, Chelsea face AC Milan in Indonesia before they take on Johor Darul Ta'zim in Malaysia. On August 15, Chelsea have a match lined up against Real Sociedad at Stamford Bridge.
2nd
2nd successive pre-season defeat for Chelsea
In a thrilling pre-season encounter last Saturday, Tottenham Hotspur defeated Chelsea 2-1 in Sydney.
The match was marked by Richarlison's dramatic injury-time winner, which came after Kevin Danso's red card in the second half.
Sandro Tonali had opened the scoring for Spurs with his first goal since joining from Newcastle United for £100 million.
Chelsea's Estevao equalized shortly after Tonali's opener, leveling the score at 1-1.
The match seemed to be heading for a draw until Richarlison scored the winner in injury time.