Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Chelsea drew 3-3 with Malaysian champions Johor Darul Ta’zim on Sunday afternoon, and Blues fans are getting more and more excited by new arrival Geovany Quenda.
Less than 24 hours after beating AC Milan easily to win 3-0, Xabi Alonso’s men took on Xisco Munoz’s Malaysian champions. It saw Alonso make 11 changes to his starting XI, mixing youth and fringe players.
The likes of Jamie Gittens, Liam Delap, Geovany Quenda and Dario Essugo all started the match, and finished it. It was a hotly contested game that saw the two sides have to be pulled apart regularly.
Delap scored twice for Chelsea, and an own goal saw the Blues end up drawing in a rough match that even saw the two dugouts go face to face. The game was supposed to go to penalties, but it didn’t.
Chelsea fans are loving what they saw from Geovany Quenda
In what was a bit of a makeshift side, Alonso was forced into two changes to the defence he intended to start with. Before kick-off, Tayo Subuloye came in for Mamadou Sarr, and then Aaron Anselmino went off.
Chelsea FC v AC Milan - Pre-Season Friendly
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
A 3-5-2 system that also saw Alonso trial Jamie Gittens and Geovany Quenda as wing-backs. Gittens struggled, but on the right flank, Quenda was excellent. It was only Quenda’s second start while on tour.
Yet, he took full advantage. Some wonderful touches, excellent skill, and willing to get in among the tackles throughout. Chelsea fans were loving what they saw from their £47m signing, who is still 19.
The praise for Quenda came pouring in, with plenty applauding the former Sporting Lisbon star’s display. One described him as a “revelation”, while one even claimed that Quenda is “better than Estevao”.
“He’s got so much potential”, was the verdict of another Chelsea supporter. Amid suggestions a loan deal might be beneficial, one fan dispelled that possible route: “Quenda will cook at Chelsea, the boy is ready.”
What has been noticed by Chelsea fans is Quenda’s versatility. One thinks that will make him “Alonso’s biggest winner” because he can play as a wing-back or a winger on both the left and the right flank.
Where will Quenda get his game time during 2026-27 campaign?
It is now just 15 days until Chelsea get their Premier League campaign underway with a West London derby against Fulham, and a reunion between Xabi Alonso and Alvaro Arbeloa in the dugouts.
Morgan Rogers will almost certainly start on the left, and it is between Estevao and Pedro Neto on the right. So, where does that leave Quenda? The Portuguese star will hope Alonso uses a three-man defence.
That will mean wing-backs, and compared to the likes of Estevao, Gittens, and Neto, Quenda is better suited to playing that role. But without doubt, Quenda will struggle to start during the 2026-27 campaign.