Chelsea begins preseason tour with Las Vegas match

By Andy Yamashita Las Vegas Review-Journal

2 years ago

Chelsea's Christian Pulisic celebrates after scoring the only goal of the game during the Engli ... — Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic celebrates after scoring the only goal of the game during the English Premier League soccer match between Chelsea and West Ham United at Stamford Bridge in London, Sunday, April 24, 2022. Chelsea won the match 1-0. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)

English Premier League team Chelsea will begin its preseason tour at 7 p.m. Saturday when it takes on Liga MX powerhouse Club America at Allegiant Stadium.

It’s been a wild couple of months for the Blues. In May, longtime owner Roman Abramovich — whose investment helped Chelsea win 19 titles, including two UEFA Champions League trophies in 2012 and 2021 — was forced to sell the club due to his connections to the Russian government because of the war in Ukraine.

Chelsea’s new leadership consortium is headed by U.S. businessman Todd Boehly, who also owns shares of the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers, MLB’s Los Angeles Dodgers and the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks.

Despite the turnover, Chelsea finished the 2021-22 campaign comfortably in third place, securing Champions League status for the fourth consecutive season. They also won the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.

However, the West London club fell short in other competitions. Chelsea lost the FA Cup and EFL Carabao Cup Finals to Liverpool after penalty shootouts, and their Champions League title defense ended in the quarterfinals against the eventual winners, Real Madrid.

Chelsea has undergone lots of personnel changes, too. Belgian striker Romelu Lukaku, who returned to West London for $135 million ahead of the 2021-22 season, left for Inter Milan on loan. Defenders Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rüdiger, key pieces of the team’s 2020-21 Champions League title, also departed to FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, respectively.

Chelsea still have quite a bit of talent, though. English midfielder Mason Mount, German attacker Kai Havertz and Brazilian defender Thiago Silva all remain, as does French World Cup winner N’Golo Kante, who won’t be with the team in Las Vegas due to his COVID-19 vaccination status.

The Blues also signed former Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling, and reports say they just agreed to a deal for Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly.

One player who may be featured for Chelsea at Allegiant Stadium Saturday is United States men’s national team winger Christian Pulisic. The first American to play in a Champions League Final, he will look to stake his place in the starting lineup, especially after the arrival of Sterling.

Chelsea will play Club America, whose side includes veteran Mexican national team members like Nestor Araujo, Jorge Sanchez, Jonathan dos Santos, Henry Martin and 2014 World Cup hero Guillermo Ochoa.

Contact reporter Andy Yamashita at ayamashita@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ANYamashita on Twitter.