This is our first Chelsea predicted lineup of pre-season. The Blues are back underway for a short two-match trial against Bayer Leverkusen and AC Milan before the Premier League kicks off. It is impossible to guess a friendly lineup at the best of times but guessing one where most of the star players had just three weeks off after the Club World Cup is an even meaner task.
Chelsea Predicted Lineup vs Bayer Leverkusen for Pre-Season Opener
How Chelsea Have Lined Up Recently
Rober Sanchez started the majority of the tournament matches with Filip Jorgensen getting a single run out. In defence, there were a lot of names used with Malo Gusto, Reece James, Tosin Adarabioyo, Trevoh Chalobah, Benoit Badiashile, Levi Colwill, and Marc Cucurella all getting starts.
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In midfield, Romeo Lavia and Moises Caicedo was a useful double pivot with Andrey Santos, James, and Enzo Fernandez also coming in as partners for Caicedo in different roles. Ahead of them, Enzo started some matches as the attacking midfielder with Cole Palmer also used there.
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Palmer was shifted out wide for some matches where he competed with Pedro Neto, Christopher Nkunku, and Noni Madueke for minutes. The striker competition saw Nicolas Jackson, Liam Delap, and Joao Pedro all start matches in the tournament, although Pedro ended it as the apparent top choice.
Chelsea Recent Form & Tactics
Enzo Maresca has been getting more versatile with his approach and used a host of different setups in the Club World Cup. His newest trick has been putting Palmer out wide and providing an attacking full-back to make dummy runs and overlap or underlap to take pressure away from him. This opens passing lanes and was pretty effective on both flanks with Gusto and Cucurella getting license to move forward.
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They only lost one match on route to becoming world champions with the 3-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain, sending a shockwave through football. Not only did the Blues win but they tore apart the Champions League winners in a controlled display. The entire knockout stage was a strong one for Maresca’s side who looked resilient and measured throughout, only a weather break and Estevao magic ever saw them pegged back after the group stage.
Chelsea Injuries to Consider
During his press conference, the manager confirmed that Levi Colwill has suffered an injury during training and will miss this one. He joins Wesley Fofana on the sidelines while Mykhailo Mudryk is still suspended.
Chelsea Predicted Lineup vs Bayer Leverkusen
A solid guess is that most of the players who were used in the Club World Cup final will be saved for the AC Milan match this weekend. They could get some minutes here but likely not from the start so this predicted lineup will feature wholesale changes.
GK – Filip Jorgensen
LB – Jorrel Hato
CB – Benoit Badiashile
CB – Tosin Adarabioyo
RB – Reece James
DM – Dario Essugo
DM – Andrey Santos
W – Jamie Bynoe-Gittens
AM – Enzo Fernandez
W – Estevao
ST – Nicolas Jackson