Kenan Yildiz Returns to Juventus Squad for Chelsea Friendly
Kenan Yildiz is back in a Juventus squad and, for the first time this summer, on the brink of a pitch rather than a treatment table.
Under the thick Hong Kong humidity at Kai Tak Stadium, the 19-year-old forward is among Luciano Spalletti’s substitutes for Wednesday afternoon’s glamour friendly against Marco Palestra’s Chelsea, a small but significant step after a World Cup that left lingering questions over his knee and overall fitness. The plan is clear: protect him, then unleash him. His first minutes of pre-season are expected to come after the interval.
For Juventus, this tour stop is less about the scoreline and more about fine-tuning a new shape and hierarchy. The team sheet underlines that. Neither of the headline summer arrivals, Randal Kolo Muani nor Kerim Alajbegovic, starts. Instead, the stage belongs to a veteran.
Arkadiusz Milik leads the line, a reminder that in a squad being reshaped, experience still has its place. The Pole gets a rare chance to command the attack from the first whistle, flanked and fed by Jeremie Boga and Fabio Miretti, two players whose energy and creativity will dictate how dangerous this 3-4-2-1 can look.
Behind them, there is steel and subtlety in equal measure. Douglas Luiz slots straight into the Juventus midfield, a central pillar alongside captain Manuel Locatelli. On the flanks, Andrea Cambiaso and summer signing Zeki Celik patrol the wing-back roles, asked to provide both width and defensive cover. Celik, newly arrived and already trusted with a start, offers an early glimpse of how Spalletti wants his wide players to function in this evolving system.
At the back, Di Gregorio starts in goal, shielded by a three-man defence of Kalulu, Gatti and Kelly. It is a blend of mobility and physicality, built to cope with the variety of threats that Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea can throw forward.
Because this is not a gentle run-out for the Italians. Alonso has named an assertive Chelsea XI, and it carries a distinctly new-season edge.
Palestra, the Italy international who swapped Atalanta for west London in a €60m move earlier in the summer, walks straight into the starting line-up. He begins on the right of a back four, a high-profile signing immediately handed responsibility rather than eased in with cameos. Around him, the structure is familiar but the details are changing.
Chelsea line up in a 4-2-3-1: Sanchez in goal; Palestra, Tosin, Fofana and Hato across the defence. In midfield, Nicoll-Jazuli partners Moises Caicedo, a double pivot asked to both protect and launch. Ahead of them, Geovany Quenda, Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens support a new focal point.
Danny Welbeck, freshly arrived and already trusted, starts at centre-forward. Alonso wastes no time. Welbeck is flanked by youth and pace, a veteran No 9 surrounded by sharp runners and technicians. It is a clear statement of how Chelsea intend to blend experience with the club’s relentless push for younger, high-ceiling talent.
Chelsea are without Levi Colwill and Cole Palmer, both missing on precautionary grounds, but the bench is stacked. Mykhailo Mudryk, only recently back with the squad, is among 21 substitutes available. That depth turns this friendly into a rolling tactical exercise: wave after wave of changes, combinations tested, partnerships formed or discarded in real time.
For Juventus, the list of absentees is less eye-catching than the names waiting in reserve. Yildiz is the headline among the substitutes, his presence alone a relief after the post-World Cup concerns. Spalletti will not rush him, but the temptation to give him a taste of pre-season action on this tour is obvious.
Kick-off comes at 12.30 BST, awkward on European clocks, perfect for a packed Hong Kong crowd eager to see two continental heavyweights share a pitch. On paper, it is “only” pre-season. On the grass, it is something different: a first look at Palestra in Chelsea blue, at Celik in black and white, at Welbeck under Alonso, and at how quickly Yildiz can rejoin Juventus’ future rather than hover on its edge.
