Chelsea won their penultimate pre-season encounter against Udinese 3-1 on Friday night in Italy after losing to Arsenal 4-0 last time.
The first half saw a good start for Thomas Tuchel’s team. Their efforts eventually resulted in a goal. A spectacular shot from N’Golo Kante gave the Blues the lead.
Raheem Sterling doubled Chelsea’s lead with eight minutes remaining in the half. Even though it was a scrappy goal, it counted as a debut goal for the former Manchester City forward.
On the other hand, Udinese scored a goal just before halftime thanks to Gerard Deulofeu.
Towards the end of the second half, it was evident that several of the players were fatigued, but just before the end of regulation, Mason Mount was assisted by Callum Hudson-Odoi on Chelsea’s third goal.
Raheem Sterling Shines
Raheem Sterling joined Chelsea as one of their top players after leaving Manchester City this summer. His expertise is unparalleled, and his acquisition will only be beneficial moving forward.
Sterling was on point right out of the gate in the matchup with Udinese. His runs from both flanks seriously troubled Udinese’s defense.
His first goal in Chelsea colors was the result of his efforts. Sterling will want to get started as soon as possible because Everton is just around the corner.
Aside from a forward like Sterling, Chelsea supporters have been hoping the team could locate a suitable replacement for Antonio Rudiger who joined Real Madrid on a free transfer earlier this summer.
Weeks after Rudiger’s departure, the club was fortunate to be able to sign Kalidou Koulibaly from Napoli. Against Udinese, the Senegalese defender made his debut as a starter. His presence was well-felt from start to finish.
Kalidou demonstrated his abilities when needed. Despite making his first start in Chelsea’s colors, he didn’t appear rusty. It is fair to say that Kalidou performed admirably each time he was required to act. The Blues will be motivated by what they have seen so far with Kalidou as the season draws near.
On the other hand, N’Golo Kante was sadly unable to travel with Chelsea on their preseason tour of the United States. Throughout the tour, the club needed his service but was handicapped.
However, the Frenchman’s performance was finally seen by the supporters for the first time this preseason against Udinese. In the middle of the field, Kante and Jorginho started and helped Chelsea to dominate the match.
Regaining match fitness is the main focus of preseason. Hence, the match against Udinese demonstrated that Chelsea is extremely close to being fully fit for the coming season.
Indeed, every single Chelsea player was eager to signal their determination throughout the entire match against the Italian team. Throughout the whole game, the Blues controlled the most of the play.
But when Udinese had the ball, Tuchel’s team moved quickly to press and not give the opponent even a small window of opportunity. Seeing the team exert huge pressure for 90 minutes was undoubtedly fantastic.
Chelsea summer signing saga with Barcelona
Jules Kounde, a target for Chelsea, has had somewhat of a transfer scandal this summer due to the Blues’ keen interest in the Sevilla player.
On their social media pages, Barcelona announced the signing of Kounde and shared the first pictures of the defender wearing the club’s colors.
The signing occurred after the deal had taken a few unexpected turns. According to Fabrizio Romano, the France international had agreed on personal terms with Chelsea but ultimately elected to play in La Liga with the Catalan Club.
The agreement with Barca is anticipated to be for five years, as the team wants to secure a center back for the foreseeable future.
The exits of Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger to Barcelona and Real Madrid, respectively, left the Blues lacking in defenders, prompting them to pursue the Frenchman.
Aside from Kounde, recall that a few days after Chelsea expressed interest and made formal offers for Raphinha and Lewandowski, Barcelona hijacked the deal.
With just one game remaining before the start of the Premier League season and a track record of just one win in preseason, Chelsea is still looking for a second (and potentially third) defender this summer.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Chelsea may still be suffering effects from the Spanish powerhouse. The team is attempting to sign Chelsea’s captain Cesar Azpilicueta after securing the services of several notable targets of the Premier League club.
