NGolo Kante and Ruben Loftus-Cheek will not go on Chelsea’s pre-season tour of the United States because they are not up to date on their Covid vaccinations.
All visitors over the age of 18 must be dual-vaccinated against the virus to enter the United States, except citizens of the country and a small number of other people.
The news was announced by the team along with a 29-man roster of players who will take on Premier League rivals Arsenal in Florida, Club America in Las Vegas, and Charlotte FC in Los Angeles.
In August of last year, Loftus-Cheek tested positive for COVID-19, and the France international Kante did the same before the Champions League group stage match against Juventus the following month.
Thomas Tuchel, the team’s manager, indicated at the time that he was unaware of how many of his players had received shots and that while he had received the shot, he would not compel anybody else to do so.
Before their first game, Chelsea will travel on Saturday and spend a week at a training camp in Los Angeles.
Thomas Tuchel has included American international Christian Pulisic in a potent traveling group that also includes Mason Mount, Kai Havertz, Reece James, and Thiago Silva.
Ben Chilwell, a left back, and Callum Hudson-Odoi, a winger, both of whom missed significant amounts of last season due to injury, were included in the 29-man group that will play three matches in the United States beginning on July 16 against Club America.
The new season will begin with a trip to Everton for Chelsea, who finished third in the league last year.
Chelsea pre-season 2022-23
On July 2, Thomas Tuchel gave his team the order to report for preseason, and on July 9, his foreign players did the same.
The world-class athletic facilities at UCLA, where the Blues have previously trained and which were a personal favorite of former coach Jose Mourinho, will host a week-long preseason training camp.
After that, the games will start, and they’ll head to Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas to play their first preseason game versus Club America of Mexico.
To play the MLS team, they will then travel to Charlotte, North Carolina, and the Bank of America Stadium. It will be followed by a game in Orlando’s Camping World Stadium versus London rivals Arsenal.
The Blues will take on Serie A team Udinese in Italy when they return to Europe.
When does the 2022–23 Chelsea season begin?
On August 6, 2022, Chelsea will play Everton in their first Premier League match of the year, kicking off their competitive season. They should be fully recovered from their tour activities by the time it ends on July 23.
They will play in a London derby against Tottenham a week after that, and then seven days later, they will play in a crucial matchup against rivals Leeds.
