Chelsea's squad looks more balanced than in recent seasons, with the return of key players like Reece James and Enzo Fernández, and the addition of new signings Morgan Rogers and Maxence Lacroix. This weekend, they'll be putting their preparations to the test in a friendly against Real Sociedad at Stamford Bridge.
Xabi Alonso's influence on the team is already being felt, with the squad showing promising signs in their preseason performances. Their best overall performance was against AC Milan last weekend, before a friendly against JDT in Malaysia. Thankfully, the Chelsea players seem to have escaped unscathed.
Real Sociedad, meanwhile, are managed by Pellegrino Matarazzo, who became the first American coach to win a major European trophy when they beat Atlético Madrid in the Copa del Rey final. World Cup champion Mikel Oyarzabal leads the line for the team, having spent his entire career with the club and notching a career-best 15 league goals last season.
Oyarzabal also equaled the Spain national team record with five goals at the World Cup, including one in the semifinal against France. Despite a quiet summer otherwise, the Real Sociedad squad remains largely unchanged from last season.
This weekend's friendly against Chelsea is a rematch of a preseason friendly from 2014, which the Blues won 2-0 with Diego Costa scoring twice in the first ten minutes. The match should provide an interesting test for both teams as they look to fine-tune their preparations for the new season.
The match is scheduled for Saturday, August 15, 2026, at 2:00 PM BST, and will be streamed live on CFC+ for £9.99. With Chelsea's squad looking more balanced than ever, and Real Sociedad's Mikel Oyarzabal in top form, this friendly is shaping up to be an intriguing encounter.
Source: Yahoo Sports
