{"id":854,"date":"2026-08-10T14:46:31","date_gmt":"2026-08-10T14:46:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/footballars.xyz\/?p=854"},"modified":"2026-08-10T14:46:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-10T14:46:31","slug":"blueco-have-already-handed-chelseas-premier-league-rivals-an-advantage-over-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/?p=854","title":{"rendered":"BlueCo have already handed Chelsea&#8217;s Premier League rivals an advantage over them"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"post-380446\">\n<div class=\"article-follow\">\n<div class=\"article-sharing google-follow\"> <a class=\"fw\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=thechelseachronicle.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"28\" height=\"28\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/wp-content\/themes\/grv-media\/img\/google-discover.svg\" alt=\"\"\/> <span>Add as preferred source on Google<\/span> <\/a> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>It has been quite a mixed pre-season for Chelsea, with there being negatives and positives.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/tag\/xabi-alonso\/\">Xabi Alonso\u2019s<\/a> side were able to beat AC Milan and Western Sydney Wanderers, but they lost to Juventus and Tottenham Hotspur before a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/match-coverage\/chelsea-player-ratings-vs-johor-darul-tazim-liam-delap-runs-riot-but-two-teammates-get-3-10\/\">3-3 draw with Johor Darul Ta\u2019zim<\/a> on Sunday.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-grvmedia-grv-video GRVMultiVideo\"\/>\n<p>Some players really shone on their pre-season tour, including Joao Pedro and new signing Marco Palestra. Others, such as Tosin Adarabioyo, had a much tougher time.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/club\/\">Chelsea<\/a> are returning home now after a lot of travelling, perhaps even too much.<\/p>\n<section class=\"grv-talking-point\" data-trigger=\"vue-sidebar\" data-story-id=\"5a9c74ee-9dfb-4c17-80a3-f12c2bcadb5e\" data-story-name=\"Talk Chelsea\" data-comment-id=\"0ad68f03-c07f-4108-a19c-085d9656810f\" data-story-slug=\"talk-chelsea\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__inner\">\n<header class=\"grv-talking-point__header\">  <\/header>\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__content\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__cta\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__title-wrap\">\n<p><h3 class=\"grv-talking-point__title\">Chelsea\u2019s pre-season tour is over! What are your early thoughts on Xabi Alonso as manager? \ud83d\udcad<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__embed\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 991px) 100vw, 800px\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/Pre-season-results-819x1024.png\" alt=\"Chelsea's pre-season results\" class=\"wp-image-380459\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/Pre-season-results-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/Pre-season-results-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/Pre-season-results-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/Pre-season-results-912x1140.png 912w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/Pre-season-results-600x750.png 600w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/Pre-season-results.png 1080w\"\/><\/div><figcaption title=\"JAKARTA, INDONESIA - AUGUST 09: Xavi Alonso, Manager of Chelsea, looks on during the Pre-Season Friendly match between Chelsea FC and Johor Darul Ta'zim F.C. at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium on August 09, 2026 in Jakarta, Indonesia.  (Photo by Darren Walsh\/Chelsea FC via Getty Images)\">Photo by Darren Walsh\/Chelsea FC via Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-chelsea-have-done-more-travelling-than-all-their-premier-league-rivals-in-pre-season\">Chelsea have done more travelling than all their Premier League rivals in pre-season<\/h2>\n<p>Like all owners, BlueCo want to grow the profile of their club, hence Chelsea\u2019s tour of Australia and Asia.<\/p>\n<p>However, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/sport\/football\/articles\/c5y62r3x213o?at_medium=RSS&amp;at_campaign=rss\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">BBC Sport<\/a>, the Blues have done more travelling than all their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/tag\/premier-league\/\">Premier League<\/a> rivals.<\/p>\n<p>In total, Chelsea players have spent 56 hours travelling 24,561 miles by plane, so it would not be a shock if they were a bit tired heading into their Premier League opener against Fulham.<\/p>\n<p>Alonso also has players who have had a very long summer after competing at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/tag\/world-cup\/\">World Cup<\/a>. Reece James, Morgan Rogers and Maxence Lacroix are not even with the squad yet after helping England and France to reach the semi-final stage of the tournament.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-getty-images-media\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 991px) 100vw, 800px\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2288572691-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Kylian Mbappe #10 of France passes the ball under pressure from Morgan Rogers #17 of England\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2288572691-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2288572691-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2288572691-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2288572691-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2288572691-1140x760.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2288572691-750x500.jpg 750w\"\/><\/div><figcaption title=\"MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA - JULY 18: Kylian Mbappe #10 of France passes the ball under pressure from Morgan Rogers #17 of England during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Bronze Final between France and England at Miami Stadium on July 18, 2026 in Miami Gardens, United States. (Photo by Leonardo Fernandez - FIFA\/FIFA via Getty Images)\">Photo by Leonardo Fernandez \u2013 FIFA\/FIFA via Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>It will be a concern for Chelsea fans, especially after what happened last summer.<\/p>\n<p>The Blues had an extremely long season after their participation at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/tag\/club-world-cup\/\">Club World Cup<\/a>. They lost Levi Colwill before the 2025\/26 campaign even kicked off, while Cole Palmer could not shake off a niggling groin injury. <\/p>\n<p>Hopefully all of this travelling does not have too much of an impact. But at this level, it often comes down to fine margins, so Chelsea\u2019s rivals may very well have a bit of an advantage over them.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/match-coverage\/what-levi-colwill-was-doing-on-the-pitch-before-chelsea-faced-jdt-and-its-good-news\/\">Colwill has missed Chelsea\u2019s last few friendlies<\/a>, but the good news is he is not thought to have a serious injury this time.<\/p>\n<div class=\"see-more-wrapper lazy see-more-open see-more-blank extra-content\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/news\/blueco-have-already-handed-chelseas-premier-league-rivals-an-advantage-over-them\/none\" data-type=\"subscribe\">\n<div class=\"see-more subscribe\">\n<figure class=\"newsletter\">\n<div><svg class=\"loading\" width=\"118\" height=\"36\" viewbox=\"0 0 118 36\"><use href=\"#dots-svg\"\/><\/svg><\/p>\n<div class=\"signup\"><span class=\"hf\">Join Our Newsletter<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><script>grvLoadAnalytics = () => {(function(d,s,i){var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s);j.async=true;j.src=\"https:\/\/www.googletagmanager.com\/gtag\/js?id=\"+i;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(document,'script','G-E7VRWQHDP6');(function(d,s,i){if(!\/callback=in\/.test(window.location.search)){var e=d.createElement(s);var n=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];e.type=\"text\/javascript\";e.async=true;e.src=\"https:\/\/static.chartbeat.com\/js\/chartbeat.js\";n.parentNode.insertBefore(e,n);}})(document,\"script\",\"G-E7VRWQHDP6\");(function(){let s=document.createElement(\"script\");s.async=true;s.dataset.domain=\"thechelseachronicle.com\/MFj4XQ\";s.src=\"https:\/\/api.publytics.net\/js\/script.manual.ping.min.js\";document.getElementsByTagName(\"head\")[0].appendChild(s);})();if(!\/callback=in\/.test(window.location.search)){setTimeout(function(){!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,document,'script','https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');fbq('init','663509325503632');fbq('track','PageView');fbq('track','ViewContent',{content_name:'BlueCo have already handed Chelsea&#8217;s Premier League rivals an advantage over them',content_category:'News',content_ids:[380446,\"premier-league\"],content_type:'post',});},3000);}}<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/news\/blueco-have-already-handed-chelseas-premier-league-rivals-an-advantage-over-them\/\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Add as preferred source on Google It has been quite a mixed pre-season for Chelsea,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":855,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-854","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chelsea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/854","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=854"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/854\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/855"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=854"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=854"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footballars.xyz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=854"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}