Xabi Alonso adapting to whirlwind Chelsea pre-season after Juventus loss in Hong Kong
Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso is navigating a challenging pre-season tour in Asia following a 1-0 loss to Juventus in Hong Kong. The team is managing logistical hurdles and pitch conditions as they prepare for upcoming matches in Indonesia and Malaysia.
Why it matters
The article highlights the logistical and performance pressures faced by elite European football clubs during global pre-season tours, which are increasingly used for commercial expansion.
Xabi Alonso said he had to “adapt to the circumstances” of a helter-skelter pre-season tour, as Chelsea prepared to jet to Indonesia following their 1-0 Hong Kong Football Festival defeat by Juventus on Wednesday.
Edon Zhegrova curled in a superb 20-yard winner after 68 minutes at Kai Tak Stadium, inflicting a second straight defeat on Chelsea after their 2-1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur in Sydney five days earlier.
Manager Alonso, who was unhappy with a patchy-looking Kai Tak playing surface, sent on Mykhailo Mudryk with eight minutes remaining for the Ukrainian’s first appearance since his November 2024 ban for an anti-doping breach.
Chelsea will face AC Milan in Jakarta on Saturday, before travelling to Malaysia for a game against local side Johor Tarul Ta’zim 24 hours later.
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