Chelsea FC touched down in Montreal yesterday ahead of their 13 day US pre-season tour. The Blues will make the Canadian city their base as they travel to and from the United States taking part in a range of high-profile friendlies.
While my colleague Lee Fraser has written about the ins and outs of the travelling squad, let’s now take a look at how Jose Mourinho’s men will be warming up before the opening Premier League fixture on August 8th at home to Swansea City.
Next: July 22nd - New York Red Bulls
New York Red Bulls v Chelsea
July 22nd, 20:00 ET
Red Bull Arena, New Jersey
Chelsea have afforded themselves a week to acclimatise to North America. With double training sessions planned for the next few days, the Blues will be looking to get themselves up to speed before their first pre-season fixture against New York Red Bulls on July 22nd.
This will be part of the impressively named International Champions Cup (*shrugs shoulders*) and the Blues will take on a MLS side that boasts former Manchester City man Bradley Wright-Phillips. The striker is currently Major League Soccer’s sixth highest scorer with eight goals in 18 appearances.
The match will be shown live in the UK at 1am BST on Chelsea TV, while our US friends will be able to enjoy the action on Fox Soccer Plus and ESPN Deportes live as well. Check out the listings in your country here.
Tickets, meanwhile, are still available here.
Next: July 25th - PSG
Chelsea v PSG
July 25th, 18:00 ET
Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
The Blues will return to Montreal following their first fixture, before flying out to North Carolina to take on Paris Saint-Germain. This is a match that will likely draw a large audience to the 73,000-capacity home of the Carolina Panthers and will be a decent test for Chelsea.
PSG’s stars need little introduction, and even if Zlatan Ibrahimovic isn’t there, this is sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
UK-based viewers will be able to catch it on both Chelsea TV and Sky Sports, while Fox Sports 2 and ESPN Deportes will carry it in the US. Again, check out your local listings here.
In case you are knocking about Charlotte next week, grab some tickets here.
Next: July 28th - Barcelona
Barcelona v Chelsea
July 28th, 20:00 ET
FedEx Field, Washington DC
The final match of the trip will see Chelsea take on reigning European champions Barcelona in the nation’s capital. Another massive NFL stadium will play host to two juggernauts of world football with the likes of Lionel Messi going up against Eden Hazard (hopefully…).
This should be the hardest test of Chelsea’s pre-season, yet given that it is pre-season you cannot read too much into it. Furthermore, US fans should unfortunately not expect much either.
Sky and Chelsea TV again have it live in the UK, while FS2 and ESPN Deportes do the same stateside. Local listings can be found here.
This match has sold pretty well, with the few tickets left remaining available here.
So, Blues fans, are you getting excited? Football is right around the corner and Chelsea are stepping up their preparations. Anyone got tickets? Anyone out there who couldn’t care less? Get involved and sound off in the comments below!
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Next: Chelsea FC Pre-Season Squad