Chelsea scored six in a chaotic friendly at Accor Stadium, but the sharper story was Joao Pedro’s nine-minute hat-trick and another scoring night for Jamie Gittens. The lead changed hands five times, and Chelsea were pushed into a match that never really settled. Xabi Alonso will have liked the attacking sharpness. He will not have liked much of the defending.

Chelsea's youthful starting XI

Chelsea named a youthful starting XI with just three senior first-team players: Tosin Adarabioyo was not in the allowed entities, so omitted, with Liam Delap and Dário Essugo among the senior names on the pitch. Dastan Satpaev also opened the scoring with a debut goal, even though he does not officially join the club until next month. The overall feel was clear enough, youth everywhere, and not much protection behind them.

Jamie Gittens kept his own run going with his third goal in three pre-season appearances. That is the sort of return that gets noticed even in a game this wild, because it shows a player taking his chances while the match is still open. Ryan Kavuma-McQueen and Essugo also drew attention in a side built around academy energy rather than control.

Joao Pedro's late burst

The game flipped when Joao Pedro came off the bench. His hat-trick came in nine minutes, which is a brutal way to finish a pre-season friendly and a useful reminder that Chelsea have a forward who can change a game quickly when the space opens up. Standard Sport’s ratings panel summed up Gittens neatly: “It is his third goal in three pre-season appearances to date.”

Dom Smith of the Evening Standard was blunt about the balance of the night: “He will be thrilled with some free-flowing attacking play, but a seriously porous defence may give cause for sleepless nights.” That feels fair. Chelsea got six goals, several bright showings from younger players, and a convincing reminder that the attacking talent is there. They also left Sydney after a game that exposed how open they can look when the structure slips.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 2 outlets. How we work →