Juventus win 1-0 against Chelsea in Hong Kong

Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea faced Luciano Spalletti’s Juventus in Hong Kong, as both sides prepare for their first league fixtures later on this month. The English side went into the friendly following a 2-1 defeat to London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, while Juve had won thier last fixture 2-0 against Nice.

Xabi Alonso’s side has played one fewer pre-season fixture compared to Juventus, who went into the game hoping to continue their strong form so far this season.

The Italian giants faced Chelsea following three fixtures in which they had kept clean sheets. They had also won two of those three games, drawing thier first match back 0-0 against FC Basel.

The Blues began their pre-season tour with a thrilling 6-4 win over Western Sydney Wanderers, but followed that win up with a loss to Spurs in the 92nd minute.

Kick-off:

The first 45 minutes at the Kai Tak Sports Park saw a close affair between Chelsea and Juventus, with just one shot on target being registered. Juventus had the most shots, but Chelsea had slightly more possession.

New signing Danny Welbeck made his debut for the Blues, along with Geovany Quenda.

Nothing could separate the two sides in the first 45, with the score remaining 0-0 at the break. At half-time, Juventus made five changes, while Chelsea made four.

Despite Chelsea yet again controlling possession in the second half, Juventus found the breakthrough in the 58th minute. Former Lille OSC forward Edon Zhegrova scored, and the second-half substitute had found the back of the net after being on the pitch for less than 25 minutes.

Alonso's side had work to do in the remaining 30 minutes, and although they were on the hunt for an equaliser, it never came. The final score was 1-0 to Juventus in Hong Kong.

Chelsea now turn their attention to fellow Italian side AC Milan, with the game in less than three days. Juventus are also in action on Saturday as they face AC Milan’s biggest rivals, Inter, in Jakarta, Indonesia.