Chelsea have planned a significantly shorter pre-season schedule ahead of the 2025-26 Premier League season due to their involvement in the Club World Cup throughout June and July.
The Blues, who lifted the Club World Cup trophy with a 3-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the final, only have two friendly fixtures ahead of their Premier League opener against Crystal Palace on August 17.
Enzo Maresca’s side returned to Stamford Bridge for the first time since May as they kicked off their pre-season with a 2-0 win against Bayer Leverkusen on August 8, and that is set to be followed by a clash with AC Milan on August 10.
Here, Sports Mole looks at the key takeaways from Chelsea’s pre-season campaign so far.
Estevao could play a big role in Chelsea’s season
Estevao of Chelsea celebrates on August 8, 2025
It is still very early days in both Estevao’s career and his time at Chelsea, but the 18-year-old sensation demonstrated why the Blues spent such a significant sum on the youngster with a superb performance on his debut against Bayer Leverkusen.
Estevao was particularly lively in the first 45 minutes, with Chelsea consistently feeding the ball to the right winger as he appeared to be their biggest attacking threat, including scoring the opening goal and making one key pass.
The Brazilian was moved into a more central role as Cole Palmer was taken off in the second half, and while aspects of his performance were still encouraging, his better position may well be from the wings, with his explosive pace and dribbling abilities far less utilised through the middle.
If this is a sign of things to come from Estevao, then there is every possibility that, at just 18 years old, he could be one of Chelsea’s key players this season.
Pedro more suited than Delap
Chelsea's Joao Pedro pictured in July 2025
Despite Chelsea being completely dominant throughout the match, Liam Delap struggled to get involved in the action, demonstrated by the striker making just 13 touches throughout his 64 minutes on the pitch.
On the other hand, Joao Pedro came on in the 64th minute and instantly had more involvement in Chelsea’s play, with his ability to move into deeper or wide positions and help in the build-up on full display.
Pedro took more touches (19) than Delap in less than half the time on the pitch, while he also got on the scoresheet with a clinical finish late on in the match, collecting the ball just inside the Bayer Leverkusen penalty area before firing into the bottom corner.
Pedro’s performance certainly demonstrates that he is more suited to when Chelsea are playing matches where they will dominate possession and have to slowly build up play, while Delap is most likely to be effective when able to use his pace and power to break forward.
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