Hong Kong plays host to another high-profile summer friendly, as Chelsea and Juventus lock horns at Kai Tak Sports Park on Wednesday.
While Juve are stopping off in the Far East on their way to Australia, the Blues are already on the second leg of a similar preseason tour after spending some time in Sydney.
There, Xabi Alonso’s team beat Western Sydney Wanderers in a 10-goal thriller, then lost to a 10-man Tottenham Hotspur due to Richarlison’s late strike. They have two more games on tour before returning to west London for one final preseason outing against Real Sociedad at Stamford Bridge.
Their Premier League campaign gets underway against a Real Madrid-tinted Fulham on Aug. 24.
Serie A kicks off on the same weekend later this month for Juventus, who start their season at Frosinone on Aug. 23. A disappointing conclusion to 2025–26 meant the Bianconeri finished sixth and will compete in the Europa League, rather than the Champions League, this term.
Luciano Spalletti’s maiden preseason at the helm has started promisingly, though, with Juve yet to concede through three Europe-based matches so far. After kicking off the summer by drawing with Basel on July 18, the Old Lady edged past Standard Liège and beat OGC Nice 2–0.
It’s hard not to think about Oscar when you mention Chelsea and Juventus in the same breath. There isn’t a single Blues supporter around at the time who’s forgotten the Brazilian’s sensational strike at the Bridge in a 2–2 draw against a Juve team that was then considerably more fearsome than now.
The Old Lady are no longer the giants they once were, but they’ve at least got the manager in place to help them return to the promised land. Spalletti has been in charge since last October, and in April, the Scudetto-winning boss with Napoli extended his stay until 2028.
Chelsea have enjoyed an encouraging start to preseason, while Alonso is starting to up the ante. Senior players are getting more minutes under and the Spaniard wouldn’t have been too disheartened by his side’s loss to Spurs, when Antonín Kinský was inspired between the posts.
Chelsea’s touring roster has deepened since the weekend, offering Alonso more alternatives across the pitch, but Juve have also been improved by new signings and are just as far along in their preparations for the new season as the Blues.
