Western Sydney Wanderers vs Chelsea Verdict
Chelsea begin life under Xabi Alonso as they take on Western Sydney Wanderers in the Sydney Super Cup in Australia. It should be a winning start for the Blues with a low-scoring game and a Chelsea clean sheet likely.
- Western Sydney Wanderers have seen under 3.5 goals in their last 5 games
- Chelsea's last two games in Australia were 1-0 wins over Sydney FC in 2015 & Perth Glory in 2018
- Chelsea have seen under 3.5 goals in 8 of their last 9 games
Wanderers vs Chelsea Head To Head
This will be the first meeting between the two clubs.
Western Sydney Wanderers Form - New Beginnings For WSW
It was a season to forget for the Wanderers after they finished bottom of the pile in the A-League, winning just five games and 17 points adrift of the finals.
It came as no surprise to see Alen Stajcic given his marching orders, with former Sydney FC boss Ufuk Talay taking charge for the upcoming season.
Talay got his first look at the Wanderers in the Australia Cup Round of 32 last week, coming away with a 2-0 win on the road over Tigers FC.
New signing Miguel de Pizio opened the scoring in the 67th minute before former Socceroos winger Brandon Borrello doubled his side's advantage four minutes later.
Western Sydney Wanderers Team News
Borrello and Di Pizio were both lively in that win over Tigers FC, registering five shots each, while Angus Thurgate controlled the game from midfield with 120 touches.
Former Melbourne City defender Germán Ferreyra played his first game for the Wanderers in the Australia Cup and should feature at the back again alongside fiery central defender Anthony Pantazopoulos.
It remains to be seen if former Bournemouth winger Ryan Fraser will get any game time after he was left out of the squad last week.
Chelsea Form - Pre-season Prep Gets Underway
Chelsea completely fell apart towards the end of the English Premier League season, losing 10 of their final 14 games to finish in 10th spot on the ladder.
Leaking 52 goals meant Chelsea had the seventh-worst defence in the competition and that's an area new manager Xabi Alonso will be keen to immediately address.
The Blues started last campaign by winning the FIFA Club World Cup in the United States, but it was a season to forget, with the club also losing the FA Cup final 1-0 to Man City.
Chelsea have played twice in Australia over the last two years, with Loïc Rémy's goal earning them a 1-0 win over Sydney FC in 2015 before an early strike from Pedro in the fifth minute handed the Blues a 1-0 victory over Perth in 2018.
Chelsea Team News
Some big names have made the trip down under, including Cole Palmer, Joao Pedro, Estevao, Wesley Fofana, Liam Delap, Jamie Gittens, Romeo Lavia and Robert Sanchez.
Sixteen-year-old rising star Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli returns to the city of his birth and could see some game time in midfield.
Alonso will field a rotated side and make several changes throughout the game, don't expect to see any of the big names play 90 minutes.