Chelsea's Cautious Pre-Season Tour in Hong Kong
Chelsea’s pre-season tour took a cautious turn in Hong Kong, where two of Xabi Alonso’s cornerstones never made it onto the teamsheet.
Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill were both left out of the squad to face Juventus on Wednesday, with Chelsea’s medical staff advising against any risk after the pair picked up minor knocks during an intensive tour schedule. No drama, but no chances taken either.
Palmer’s momentum checked – for now
Palmer’s absence carried the most weight. Since arriving at Stamford Bridge he has become the pulse of Chelsea’s attack, and his early pre-season form only underlined that status.
In the Sydney Super Cup, the 24-year-old came off the bench to set up a goal in a wild 6–4 win over Western Sydney Wanderers, then started in the 2–1 defeat to Tottenham. He was meant to be central again against Juventus. Instead, he was stuck on the sidelines in Hong Kong.
“I’m disappointed not to play due to a slight issue, but I love Hong Kong. Amazing support,” he told reporters pitchside before kick-off. The frustration was obvious, but so was the sense that this was about the long game, not a July friendly.
Colwill, pencilled in as a starter at the back, joined him in the stands. Two certain names on the team sheet, both scratched out by the club’s doctors.
Alonso reshapes his hand
With two pillars missing, Alonso had to improvise.
At the heart of defence, Wesley Fofana and Tosin Adarabioyo stepped in as the new pairing, covering the gap left by Colwill. It was a partnership born of necessity, but also a glimpse at the depth Chelsea have tried to build this summer.
Higher up the pitch, the tactical shift was even more telling. Without Palmer’s craft and control between the lines, Joao Pedro was pushed into a central attacking role, asked to become the creative hub. That move opened the door for Danny Welbeck, the summer signing handed his Chelsea debut as part of a reworked frontline.
Around them, Alonso blended familiar faces with fresh ambition. Marco Palestra and Jorrel Hato kept their places at full-back, a nod to continuity in an otherwise reshuffled side. In midfield, Moises Caicedo anchored the centre of the pitch, but the real story sat alongside him.
Sixteen-year-old Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli, straight from the academy, earned his first start for the club. In a game headlined by absentees and returning stars, a teenager suddenly found himself in the thick of it.
Mudryk back from the cold
On the bench, another narrative quietly gathered pace.
Mykhailo Mudryk, out of action for Chelsea since November 2024, finally returned to a matchday squad. The Ukrainian winger had been locked in limbo under a provisional suspension amid a doping dispute, his future at the club shrouded in uncertainty. That cloud lifted when the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned his four-year ban, clearing him to play again.
Alonso outlined the delicate nature of Mudryk’s reintegration.
“We trained yesterday. He came directly from the airport to the hotel. So, yesterday was more about the feelings, more about the emotions, to be back with the players to assess the fitness level,” the Chelsea head coach said. “But yes, he could play, maybe 90 minutes too early, but he can be selected. He’s selected, so he can play. We are thrilled that Misha could be with us.”
Mudryk’s name on the team sheet felt like a statement. Not just that he was free to play, but that Chelsea were ready to fold him back into a squad still searching for its final shape.
That doesn’t mean the noise around him has stopped. Interest from elsewhere in the Premier League has not gone away, and Alonso admitted the club is still weighing up the best plan for a player who cost £62 million and has yet to fully ignite at Stamford Bridge. A loan remains a live possibility.
A squad in motion
Behind the scenes, the machine keeps whirring. Chelsea are closing in on what would be an 11th signing of the summer, even as they juggle outgoings, loan decisions and the fitness of a core group expected to carry the load once the real games start.
For Palmer and Colwill, the message is simple: rest now, be ready later. The club wants both fully fit for the season opener, not patched up for a pre-season date with Juventus.
This tour has already offered a snapshot of Chelsea’s new era under Alonso: bold selections, academy chances, big names under scrutiny, and a squad still being built on the fly.
The question now is whether this careful management of bodies and futures will give Chelsea the stability they have craved when the whistle blows on the season that actually counts.
