Chelsea Predicted XI vs Juventus LEAKED?

Chelsea vs Juventus: The 'Leaked' XI, Kick-Off Time and How We Line Up in Hong Kong

A graphic is doing the rounds claiming to show Xabi Alonso's side for Wednesday's friendly. Here's the XI that's supposedly leaked — plus the kick-off time, the venue, where to watch, and the Juventus team we're actually facing.

The XI reportedly doing the rounds ahead of Chelsea vs Juventus (graphic: Blue Lions FC).

So What's Been 'Leaked'?

A graphic has been circulating claiming to show the Chelsea XI for the Juventus friendly in Hong Kong, and it's got plenty of us talking. Line it up in a 4-2-3-1 and it reads: Mike Penders in goal; a back four of Jorrel Hato, Tosin Adarabioyo, Wesley Fofana and Josh Acheampong; Nicoll-Jazuli and Moisés Caicedo as the double pivot; Jamie Gittens, João Pedro and Estêvão in behind Danny Welbeck.

Big caveat first: this is unconfirmed. Alonso hasn't named a side, Chelsea don't hand out XIs this far in advance, and in pre-season the personnel can change by the half. It's also worth being straight — this leaked side is a good deal younger and more rotation-flavoured than the XIs most outlets are predicting, which lean on Cole Palmer, new right-back Marco Palestra, Levi Colwill and Roméo Lavia. Treat it as a bit of fun and a talking point rather than gospel.

The claim originated from a post on X:

When, Where and How to Watch

Here's everything you need to tune in:

Date: Wednesday 5 August 2026

Kick-off: 12:30pm BST (7:30pm local time in Hong Kong)

Venue: Kai Tak Sports Park, Kowloon, Hong Kong — a 50,000-capacity stadium hosting this as part of the Hong Kong Football Festival

How to watch: CFC+ worldwide. Internationally it also airs on CBS Sports Golazo (US), Paramount+ (Australia), TVNZ+ (New Zealand), DAZN (Germany, Japan, Austria), Sky Sport Calcio (Italy) and Claro Sports (Central and South America). There is no regular UK TV coverage.

It's our first meeting with Juventus in nearly five years — the last time was that glorious 4-0 night at Stamford Bridge in the 2021-22 Champions League. After this one we stay in Asia for games against AC Milan and Johor Darul Ta'zim over the weekend.

The Pride of London — preview & TV info

How We Got Here

Pre-season has been eventful. We battered Western Sydney Wanderers in a ten-goal thriller in Sydney, then lost 2-1 to a ten-man Tottenham with virtually the last kick of the game — Alonso's first defeat in charge. Six goals conceded in two matches is not the look the manager wants, and tightening up defensively will be the priority in Hong Kong.

Alonso was honest about it afterwards: this is a squad still finding its level. "We are at the stage of pre-season, so not where we want to be, for sure," he admitted, with three weeks until the Premier League opener against Fulham.

There's help arriving, though. Caicedo and Nicolas Jackson only linked back up with the squad last weekend after extended leave following the World Cup and didn't feature against Spurs. Mykhailo Mudryk is also back in the picture following his return from a doping ban — his first involvement since November 2024 — though Alonso has already confirmed he won't play the full 90 here.

Tellingly, only two players have started both friendlies so far: young goalkeeper Teddy Sharman-Lowe and Dário Essugo, as Alonso works his way through an enormous squad.

The Team News Behind the XI

The goalkeeper picture is the one to watch. Sharman-Lowe started both Australia games with Robert Sánchez nursing a minor knock and Penders still on a post-World Cup break. Penders — back after a season on loan at Strasbourg — links up with the squad in Hong Kong and has just three games to try and unsettle Sánchez as the No.1. This leaked XI backs the young Belgian to start, which would be a genuine statement.

Elsewhere, the side skews young. Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson have both signed in recent days to add experience, but the leaked XI leans on academy and rotation options. The eye-catcher is Josh Acheampong at right-back — a reminder that getting him regular, meaningful minutes remains a live question — while Nicoll-Jazuli, who has genuinely impressed in pre-season, would be handed a serious platform in a pivot next to Caicedo. Note too that Palestra, the summer right-back signing most outlets expect to start, doesn't appear in this particular XI.

Hato at left-back makes sense: he arrived from Ajax as cover in that area and is comfortable there or in the middle, so slotting in with Cucurella edging towards the exit is exactly the kind of audition Alonso will want to run.

Last Word on Sports — Chelsea squad options breakdown

Who We're Facing: Spalletti's Juventus

This is a proper test. Luciano Spalletti's Juventus are rebuilding after a sixth-place finish last season dropped them into the Europa League, and pre-season has been all about structure. Three games, unbeaten, and — crucially — not a single goal conceded: a 0-0 draw with Basel, a 1-0 win at Standard Liège through a Fabio Miretti free-kick, and a 2-0 victory over Nice with Douglas Luiz and teenager Justin Oboavwoduo on the scoresheet.

Spalletti has switched between a back four and a back three so far, so the exact shape is hard to call. The travelling squad includes new signings Randal Kolo Muani, back at the club after his spell at PSG, and Kerim Alajbegović from Bayer Leverkusen — a name we'd been credited with interest in ourselves. World Cup returnees Kenan Yıldız and Weston McKennie are building fitness, with Douglas Luiz and Lloyd Kelly among the more familiar faces likely to feature. After Hong Kong, Juve fly to Perth for friendlies against Inter Milan and Palermo.

Juventus.com — Standard Liège match report

What to Expect

Let's keep perspective: this is a workout, not a war. If the leaked XI is anywhere near accurate, expect a youthful, experimental Chelsea up against an organised, hard-to-break-down Juventus that hasn't conceded all summer. The real story is minutes, fitness and combinations rather than the scoreline. But after shipping six goals in two games, Alonso will badly want to see more control at the back — and a first clean sheet of the tour would tell him more than any result.

Leaked or not, we'll only know the real XI an hour before kick-off. Either way, it's the clearest look yet at how Xabi Alonso is thinking with three weeks to go until Fulham.

— Blue Lions FC | bluelionsfc.com