Chelsea held 3-3 by Johor Darul Ta’zim in Malaysia as Xabi Alonso’s pre-season ends
Chelsea drew 3-3 with Malaysian champions Johor Darul Ta’zim in Johor on 9 August 2026, concluding their pre-season tour as Liam Delap scored twice from the penalty spot. Xabi Alonso made 11 changes for the friendly and saw his side finish the match amid several disciplinary incidents.
Alonso faces fewer than two weeks to prepare for the Premier League opener against Fulham on 24 August, managed by Álvaro Arbeloa, after a preseason which included victories and congested travel. The manager rested players following a win over Milan with a strong lineup only 24 hours earlier and 600 miles away, while the squad currently stands at 41 players and the club will not play in Europe next season. Chelsea finished 10th in the Premier League last season and Alonso has been given the task of transforming that position into Champions League qualification.
The attacking selection against JDT featured Estêvão Willian, Liam Delap and Nicolas Jackson, the trio who have cost Chelsea more than £100m combined in the past three years. Delap scored his two penalties in 20 minutes — as many goals as he managed in his entire first season at Chelsea after joining from Ipswich — and is believed to want to stay and compete for a place. Alonso’s other options include João Pedro, the recent signing Danny Welbeck, Jackson, Emmanuel Emegha from sister club Strasbourg, and Marc Guiu; Morgan Rogers, the club’s record signing at £117m, and wide players such as Cole Palmer and Estêvão add to the choices on the wings.
Discipline featured repeatedly: Delap and Jackson were booked for dissent, Estêvão received a yellow for kicking out after contesting a penalty decision, Geovany Quenda was booked for a late challenge after coming on, and 16-year-old Reggie Watson was booked in stoppage time, five yellows in total. Chelsea received 11 red cards last season — twice as many as any other side and a club record — and Alonso has diverged from the owners’ previous youth-only recruitment policy by adding veterans Danny Welbeck, 35, and Jordan Henderson, 36.
The match swung back and forth. JDT opened the scoring when they broke and Arif Aiman finished a rapid move, Delap levelled just before half-time and then put Chelsea ahead early in the second half. Óscar Arribas then equalised three minutes later from a heavily deflected free kick, Bérgson put JDT back in front with four minutes remaining, and Mykhailo Mudryk, who returned unexpectedly early from a drugs ban at the end of July, produced the cross that forced Antonio Glauder into an own goal with a minute on the clock to make it 3-3.
Chelsea’s itinerary had been demanding: three matches in three countries over five days — Juventus in Hong Kong, Milan in Indonesia and JDT in Malaysia — with the last two fixtures played on successive days and the team’s plane landing in Malaysia at 3am on the day of the game. Alonso will have one final friendly against Real Sociedad on Saturday and only two weeks to work with the £117m signing Morgan Rogers, the injury-prone captain Reece James and the disgruntled star Enzo Fernández, all due back at the club’s Cobham training ground this week following extended World Cup breaks.
Alonso’s preparations resume with the friendly against Real Sociedad on Saturday, after which Chelsea will begin their Premier League campaign away to Fulham on 24 August.