Chelsea vs AC Milan
AC Milan are humming along under Max Allegri this preseason, as they’ve been undefeated so far. After defeating Premier League sides Arsenal and Liverpool to start, the Rossoneri followed it up with a 9-0 rout of Perth Glory in their most recent Club Friendly last week. They have a winnable game against Leeds United later at the Aviva Stadium. After that, they will visit Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea on Sunday for their final preseason contest before opening their 2025-26 campaign with a Coppa Italia game against Bari.
Chelsea also had a busy preseason. Enzo Maresca’s men won the Club World Cup last month, and their upcoming match against Bayer Leverkusen will be their first non-bearing game this preseason. After the AC Milan contest, the Blues will open their Premier League campaign against Crystal Palace next week.
The SBOTOP Club Friendly 2025 odds predict a tight contest filled with Club Friendly 2025 highlights between these two teams.
Talking Points
Chelsea easing Jackson and Nkunku out
Chelsea have been busy this summer transfer window, and believe it or not, they’ve had more outgoings than incomings so far. They recently sold Noni Madueke, Kepa, Djordje Petrovic, Joao Felix, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Marc Guiu, and Lesley Ugochukwu, among others. In return, they acquired Liam Delap, Jamie Gittens, Joao Pedro, Estevao, Geovany Quenda, and Jorrel Hato, and they’re not yet done.
The Blues have been recently linked to a move with Alejandro Garnacho and Xavi Simons, but they must offload more players to fund their plans. According to local reports, Chelsea have placed Christopher Nkunku and Nicolas Jackson on the chopping block, so they’re ruled out in the team’s preseason matches.
They might need to sign another defender, as 22-year-old centre-back Levi Colwill recently sustained an ACL injury during preseason training. Benoit Badiashile and Enzo Fernandez are listed as questionable to play against the Rossoneri due to injuries.
Chelsea will rely heavily on Cole Palmer, Pedro Neto, and Joao Pedro to score against AC Milan, considering their performances during the Club World Cup. Neto carried the heavy offensive load for the Blues during the early stages of the tournament. Then Palmer (brace) and Pedro put on the finishing touches by scoring three goals against the vaunted Parisiens in the final.
AC Milan are coming together
Max Allegri is off to a brisk start with AC Milan, as the Rossoneri are firing on all cylinders in the final third. After eking out a penalty shootout victory against Arsenal, AC Milan plundered four goals against Liverpool and nine unanswered against Perth Glory.
Rafael Leao and Noah Okafor accounted for seven of the team’s last 13 goals, so they will likely lead the line against Chelsea. If Allegri rotates his side this weekend, we might see more from summer signings Luka Modric, Samuele Ricci, Pervis Estupinan, Ardon Jashari, and Pietro Terracciano. Christian Pulisic and Fikayo Tomori will also return to their old stomping grounds, and they will let Chelsea know what they’re missing. However, Pulisic is questionable to play due to a minor ankle injury he sustained against Liverpool in Hong Kong.
According to local reports, AC Milan have their eyes on Rasmus Hojlund, but the Manchester United striker is not keen on a move away from Old Trafford. The team is also linked to Dusan Vlahovic from Juventus.
History
Sunday marks the eighth meeting between Chelsea and AC Milan, though they’ve worked on several player transfers throughout the years. Chelsea have the edge in the overall head-to-heads with three wins, while AC Milan have only one win and three draws.
These two teams last met in the 2022-23 Champions League group stage, where Chelsea defeated AC Milan via an aggregate tally of 5-0. The Blues took the top spot in Group E with 13 points, and the Rossoneri finished second with 10 points to advance to the knockout phase. Chelsea lost to Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, while AC Milan lost to Napoli in the same juncture.
Chelsea are back in the Champions League after finishing fourth in the Premier League table last term with 69 points. The Blues also won the Europa Conference League, defeating Real Betis 4-1 in the final for Enzo Maresca’s first trophy.
Meanwhile, AC Milan will not have European football this upcoming season after finishing eighth in the Serie A table last term, although they won the Supercoppa Italiana in January. The Rossoneri have cycled through two Portuguese coaches (Paulo Fonseca and Sergio Conceicao) and eventually went with Max Allegri this summer.
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