Who does Xabi Alonso Pick? : Chelsea Predicted XI vs Tottenham

Chelsea Predicted XI vs Tottenham: How We Line Up in the Sydney Super Cup

Xabi Alonso's new-look Blues meet Roberto De Zerbi's Spurs down under on Saturday morning. Here's the eleven we expect him to name — and the story behind it. Kick Off10:45am BST tomorrow (Saturday 1 August) — that's 7:45pm local time in Sydney at Stadium Australia.

Our predicted Chelsea XI to face Tottenham in Sydney (4-2-3-1).

Setting the Scene

Two of London’s fiercest rivals, 10,000 miles from home. Chelsea face Tottenham at Stadium Australia in Sydney on Saturday, kicking off at 10:45am BST — the pick of the Sydney Super Cup, and Xabi Alonso’s second match in charge of the Blues.

The first went about as well as pre-season openers go: a wild 6-4 win over Western Sydney Wanderers, with João Pedro helping himself to a hat-trick and Dastan Satpaev and Dário Essugo also on the scoresheet. Entertaining, yes. Watertight, no. Alonso will want to see more control against sterner opposition here.

We’re still without a big chunk of the first team. The World Cup lads — Reece James, Malo Gusto, Trevoh Chalobah, Enzo Fernández and record signing Morgan Rogers among them — remain on their post-tournament break. New £52m arrival Maxence Lacroix has signed but stayed behind after France’s run to the semi-finals. So this is a young, experimental Chelsea — and that’s exactly what makes it worth watching.

Sky Sports — pre-season fixtures & kick-off times

The Predicted XI (4-2-3-1)

We’re expecting Alonso to line up in a 4-2-3-1, leaning on the senior faces who came off the bench against Western Sydney to start this one, with a heavy sprinkling of youth around them. Team news is fluid this far out and he may well tinker — but this is our best read on it:

Chelsea (4-2-3-1):Sánchez; Acheampong, Fofana, Colwill, Palestra; Essugo, Nicoll-Jazuli; Estêvão, Palmer, Satpaev; João Pedro.

Position by Position

Goalkeeper.Robert Sánchez returns between the sticks, headguard and all, stepping in for the academy keepers. Alonso wants a settled number one and Sánchez gets the nod to build his rhythm.

Defence.This is where it gets intriguing. Fofana and Colwill are a genuinely high-ceiling centre-half pairing when fit, and both need minutes — Colwill in particular is still building sharpness after a serious lay-off, so easing him through pre-season is exactly the plan. Josh Acheampong keeps his place at right-back, and regular minutes are precisely what his development needs after a stop-start breakthrough. The eye-catcher is on the opposite flank: Marco Palestra, our summer signing from Atalanta, deployed at left-back.

And we won’t gloss over the nuance there. Palestra is a natural right-back — named Serie A’s Defender of the Season on loan at Cagliari last term, and comfortable on either flank, but his home is the right. Playing him at left-back is a pre-season look born of necessity as much as design: with Cucurella gone to Real Madrid and no senior specialist left-back on the tour, someone has to fill the gap. Don’t read it as a long-term blueprint.

Sky Sports — Marco Palestra signs from Atalanta

Chelsea confirm Marc Cucurella’s Real Madrid transfer

Midfield.Dário Essugo and Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli form the double pivot. Essugo already has a goal to his name this pre-season and looks a real find; Nicoll-Jazuli is one of the Cobham crop handed a golden chance to impress on tour. Raw, but exciting — and exactly the kind of audition these fixtures exist for. Big expectations around Nicoll-Fazuli, with Cole Palmer weighing in on the talent, hinting that he has the ability to make a 1st team impact under Alonso. Will he start tomorrow against Tottenham?

Attack.The front three is where the quality lives. Cole Palmer pulls the strings as the number ten, our talisman, the man everything runs through. Either side of him, two of the most exciting young wingers in world football: Estêvão on the right and Dastan Satpaev on the left, both direct, both fearless. If Alonso wants to see his attack click, this is the test. The youth will be raring to run at Tottenham's backline.

Striker.João Pedro leads the line off the back of that hat-trick against Western Sydney. He’s quickly making the number nine shirt his own, and another sharp showing here would do his confidence no harm at all. The more goals Joao Pedro can score during preseason, the better his form and confidence will be at the start of the new Premier League Season.

Pride of London — Chelsea vs Tottenham preview & predicted lineups

What We’re Watching

Palmer is the whole thing.Everything good will come through him. Watch how Alonso structures the side to get our number ten on the ball in dangerous areas — that’s the blueprint for the whole season taking shape.

The kids get a proper test.Satpaev, Nicoll-Jazuli, Acheampong — this is a real look at the next generation against Premier League opposition. That is the genuine value of a game like this, not the scoreline.

The left-back question.Palestra at left-back is a stopgap. Cucurella’s Bernabéu move has left a hole, and how we fill it long-term is the summer’s most important unanswered question. We’ve already run through our five realistic replacements — with Adrien Truffert and Lewis Hall topping our board.

The Verdict

A young Chelsea should carry too much attacking quality for a Spurs side also rotating heavily before they head home. Alonso will want a cleaner defensive performance than the Western Sydney madness — expect fewer goals but far more control. We’re calling it Chelsea 2-1, with Palmer at the heart of everything.

New manager, new faces, same old rivalry — and we fancy the Blues to spoil Spurs’ party down under.

Team news current as of Friday 31 July; the XI above is our own prediction and Alonso’s final selection may differ.