Chelsea’s pre-season tour of the United States ended in defeat when they were beaten 2-1 by Real Madrid in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Enzo Maresca’s team once again showed their defensive weaknesses and conceded the first goal in the 19th minute, when Lucas Vázquez sent the ball into the bottom corner after a deflection, despite Dani Ceballos’ attempts to score.
Less than ten minutes later, Los Blancos got their second goal. This time, Brahim Díaz took advantage of an excellent pass from Vinicus Jr., beat Filip Jorgenson and scored from a tight angle.
Noni Madueke headed the Blues in but it was not enough to prevent a third defeat in five games under their new manager.
Here, Mail Sport’s Kieran Gill analyses the talking points from Chelsea’s last game in the US.
Brahim Díaz finished off a beautiful pass from Vinicius Jr in what turned out to be the winning goal
Noni Madueke headed home Chelsea but it wasn’t enough to prevent another defeat
The Blues will now return to the UK after playing five games in the US, winning just one.
Chelsea’s high defensive line exposed
Chelsea’s attacking line was constantly exposed by Real Madrid’s speedy players. A ball behind them and boom, the Spaniards were through.
If Manchester City analysts view this game as part of their preparation for their Premier League debut at Stamford Bridge, they will take note.
Last season we saw Ange Postecoglou’s Tottenham struggle whenever someone played a pass over the goal and one suspects that will be a problem for Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea too.
Rodrygo (pictured) was among others delighted to find his place behind Chelsea’s high line.
The men Maresca turns to
Reece James, Romeo Lavia and Christopher Nkunku are the only players to have started all five of Chelsea’s friendlies in the United States. It’s interesting because they are three players who missed much of last season through injury.
Lavia in particular has impressed this pre-season, as we’ve seen the 20-year-old grow as a deep-lying player with each performance.
Enzo Maresca has started Romeo Lavia (left) in all five of his pre-season games as Blues manager
Have the US releases affected the Blues?
Speaking to Moises Caicedo on Monday, the £115m Chelsea midfielder was candid when discussing the state of playing surfaces in the United States.
“The pitches are very dry,” he said. “We know that we are players of incredible quality, but sometimes it doesn’t all depend on you, but on the pitches.”
Caicedo’s name was not on the team sheet, so we all assumed he was going to be rested, but that turned out to be a mistake, as he was introduced in the second half.
Nicolas Jackson, meanwhile, has not been included in any squad for this pre-season tour, but did train with the squad on Monday, so could face Inter Milan at Stamford Bridge this weekend.
Moisés Caicedo lamented the state of the soccer fields in the United States before the match with Real Madrid
Vinicius Jr a good example
Reece James had a hard time getting along with Vinicius Junior, but there’s nothing wrong with that, given that he’s one of the best wingers in the world.
Vinicius is a perfect example of what Chelsea expect from the young talents they sign before they turn 18. Vinicius has had time to improve and is now a certified superstar.
Next summer, Chelsea should count on Estevao Willian and Kendry Paez to join them on tour.
Vinicus Jr’s progress shows Chelsea must be patient with several of their stars
Transfer work still to be done
Chelsea now have work to do in the window.
Not only with arrivals but also with departures, as there are players in their large group whose future needs to be resolved.
Ben Chilwell did not play against Los Blancos after failing to perform against Manchester City
Armando Broja is another of those who was snubbed by Maresca and could leave Chelsea this summer
Ben Chilwell is one of them, as he barely participated in the United States and Maresca admitted that he is not sure he can invest.
Armando Broja is another of them, since he was not even called up for this match.
