Chelsea are back in action this week and despite everything that has happened at the club in recent years, it’s exciting to see the players back in action.
Chelsea currently have five pre-season friendlies scheduled, with another intrasquad match also possible.
Enzo Maresca and his team head to the United States today for a pre-season tour, and the real hard work begins now.
The Blues face Wrexham in their first game of the new season this Thursday at 3.30am (BST).
On Saturday 27th July, Chelsea play Celtic at 9pm.
They will play Club America on Thursday, August 1st at 12:30 AM.
They face Manchester City on Saturday 3rd August at 10.30pm.
They play Real Madrid on Wednesday, August 7th at midnight.
Finally, on Sunday 11th August at 3pm, Maresca will make his debut at Stamford Bridge, which will hopefully build excitement and anticipation.
This pre-season schedule is set to be a tough start with some very tough games, and the first game of the Premier League season is against Manchester City again on August 18th!
I don’t like to get too excited or upset about pre-season games and results. It often doesn’t mean much. Mauricio Pochettino’s Chelsea looked very good in pre-season a year ago, but when it comes to business, they look completely different. It can go the other way. So I keep my expectations low.
We play against top teams like Real Madrid and City, especially when you have a new manager and new players coming in and having to learn a new style of play, we can never expect too much. We will have to be a little patient before we really see where we are this season.
I’m not confident about next season yet. I think I’ll have to wait and see what kind of transfer deals are made before the end of the transfer window before I can make a judgment. But I’m cautiously optimistic about Maresca and what he wants to do with the way he plays, and I’ve already heard some good news from sources close to the players. But I think everything has to be done and fully developed before I can make a judgment.
Obviously I am very concerned about the Enzo Fernandez case and what that will mean, and as I said, I am also concerned about the rest of the transfer deals that we do. I truly believe that the remaining deals can make or break our season. It is that important.
We’re getting there, but I don’t think we’re there yet.
Pre-season games are played sporadically and at random times due to the different time zones in the US. It’s really annoying trying to watch and cover games for UK fans, but for many overseas fans who have to do this every week, it’s just a normal thing, so you can’t complain! Really respect that!
I believe that the signs of Maresca’s football will be visible early on, even in the first game later this week. I think we will see some differences.
I’m looking forward to this game and seeing how he sets up his team. The squad will change, but I think the first formation and set-up he uses later this week will be the same for the rest of the season.
It’s not all about the results, but I hope we can see some encouraging performances from this game, both individually and as a team. This can really help us prepare for the rest of the season.
But ultimately, there is no need to panic or get too excited during the preseason, especially when it comes to a new manager situation.
Either way, bring on Ryan Reynolds this Thursday! Let’s go!!
