This is what a top team looks like, Chelsea! Winners and losers as Vinicius Jr and Real Madrid tear Blues apart to end woeful pre-season tour
Last season’s Champions League winners swept aside their Premier League opponents, leaving Enzo Maresca with a lot to improve upon
Real Madrid are a lot better than Chelsea; we didn’t need a pre-season friendly to tell us that. Tuesday’s 2-1 win for Los Blancos in Charlotte, though, proved just how big that gap was. Madrid, even with star players still not back from post-tournament holidays, are ready for their season to start. Chelsea? Not even close.
Lucas Vazquez opened the scoring for Madrid here, although Dani Ceballos claimed that he got the final touch. Brahim Diaz then made it 2-0, rounding new Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen to cap what was a Man-of-the-Match performance. Noni Madueke did pull one back before half-time to maintain his good pre-season scoring run, but it proved to be merely a consolation.
Madrid’s season officially starts on August 14 when they take on Atalanta in the UEFA Super Cup. Chelsea’s, meanwhile, begins four days later against Manchester City in the Premier League. On this evidence, one team is ready for their first competitive assignment, and the other couldn’t be further away.
GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from Bank of America Stadium…
WINNER: Vinicius Jr
Having came off the bench against Barcelona this past weekend, Vinicius Jr made his first start of pre-season against Chelsea. And if this was any indication, Vini is ready to play.
The Brazilian star was unplayable in the first half as he ran Chelsea’s defence ragged. He created several chances all on his own and provided a spectacular trivela assist for Brahim’s goal. If something good was happening for Real Madrid, Vini was usually at the centre of it.
It’s scary to think that this season he’ll actually be under less pressure, despite him being the Ballon d’Or favourite. With all eyes on Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius may even have more space to run and more chances to make magic.
If he’s this good without Mbappe, the thought of them playing together is frightening. Defenders, be warned; this won’t be easy.