The Premier League giants will travel to Austria to take on Wolfsberger AC on Wednesday, July 23, 2014. The match will kick off at 3:30 PM PST from Klagenfurt Stadium. Chelsea have opened their preseason account in fine form, defeating Wycombe Wanderers and Wimbledon FC in their first two fixtures.
Chelsea Team News:
Jose Mourinho and the Chelsea faithful will certainly be excited for Wednesday’s match, as new signings Cesc Fabregas, Diego Costa, and Filipe Luis have made the journey. As reported by ChelseaFC.com, star defenders Gary Cahill and Cesar Azpilicueta will also be a part of the squad, along with Spanish striker Fernando Torres.
It will be interesting to see if Fabregas plays in particular though, as it is difficult to project his position at this stage. The former Barcelona midfielder typically played more of an attacking role with his La Liga side, but I expect Mourinho to try him out in both defensive and attacking midfield positions, given the surplus of attacking players.
Chelsea are still missing the Brazilian trio of Oscar, Willian, and Ramires, as they remain on vacation following this month’s grueling World Cup. This holds true for several other key pieces of the squad, which include Belgium international stars Thibaut Courtois, Eden Hazard, and Romelu Lukaku.
RZ Pellets News:
The Austrian based club are already in-season after opening their Bundesliga account with a 4-1 victory over FC Trenkwalder Admira. Chelsea are certainly a more household name than RZ Pellets. The team managed a fifth place finish last season; their first in Austrian football’s top flight.
Wolfsberger don’t feature high profile players. Midfielder Jacobo Ynclán is probably the biggest threat and most experienced player in the squad. The 30 year old Spaniard has played for several second and third division sides in Spain, as well as playing one match for Atletico Madrid back in 2007.
Chelsea vs RZ Pellets Prediction
The Austrians don’t pose too much of a threat for Chelsea, especially given the players that the Blues now have at their disposal. The Londoners aren’t at full strength just yet, but their current squad has plenty of youth and experience to handle RZ. Youth players such as Izzy Brown and Jeremie Boga have played extraordinary football thus far, and will look to continue their fine preseason campaigns in front of the Chelsea boss. Even if the Blues’ new additions don’t see a great deal of playing time, I believe that Chelsea will defeat Wolfsberger AC 4-1.
Chelsea vs RZ Pellets TV Schedule
The Chelsea vs RZ Pellets match will not be televised in the United States. For all other regions check LiveSoccerTV.
