The Blues snatched a last-gasp equaliser in their final friendly before their Premier League opener but they remain worryingly inefficient
Chelsea needed a last-minute equaliser from Lesley Ugochukwu to avoid yet another pre-season setback, with the Frenchman coming off the bench to earn his side a 1-1 draw with Inter on Sunday afternoon.
The Blues bossed the majority of the game at Stamford Bridge but, as was so often the case last season, struggled to turn possession into goals and fell behind in the 26th minute when some slack defending allowed Marcus Thuram to break the deadlock with a thumping strike.
Chelsea continued to pile on the pressure in the second half, though, and claimed a deserved draw with what was almost the last kick of the game, as Ugochukwu fired home after the ball had dropped for him in the area.
Below, GOAL runs through all the big winners and losers from Chelsea's final friendly before they kick off their Premier League campaign against Manchester City next week…
Getty WINNER: Christopher Nkunku
Chelsea's 2023-24 season – and indeed France's Euro 2024 campaign – could have gone very differently had Christopher Nkunku been fully fit.
The forward is a quality player and he showed that again at Stamford Bridge by very nearly drawing his side level just moments after his introduction with a stunning overhead kick that was brilliantly kept out by Yann Sommer
He was lively for the remainder of the second half and it was no surprise at all that Chelsea's late leveller came after Nkunku had seen a shot blocked.
Based on what we've seen in pre-season, if Nkunku can stay fit, he could belatedly make a very big impact in the Premier League – and it's imperative that he does, given Cole Palmer is the only reliable source of goals in Maresca's side.
AdvertisementLOSER: Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
It wasn't particularly surprising that Chelsea signed Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall. The midfielder had played a key part in Maresca's Leicester securing promotion to the Premier League last season.
However, there were immediate doubts over whether he was really good enough to play for such an ambitious club and his performance on Sunday did little to dissuade them.
Dewsbury-Hall was deployed in the No. 10 role but offered next-to-no attacking threat and contributed nothing from a defensive perspective. Fair to say that he does not look like an upgrade on Conor Gallagher at all.
Getty WINNER: Marcus Thuram
Euro 2024 did not go well for Marcus Thuram. He began the tournament as France's No. 9 but had been dropped to the bench by the time they reached the semi-finals and didn't see a single minute of game time in the 2-1 loss to eventual winners Spain.
The good news for Inter is that the striker doesn't seem to have been negatively affected by that chastening experience in Germany, as his first-half strike was as confident as they come, with Thuram smashing the ball past Robert Sanchez from the edge of the area.
It was a most timely boost for the Frenchman and not just because of his struggles at the Euros. With Mehdi Taremi having joined Inter during the summer, Thuram is likely to have stiff competition for a starting spot alongside Lautaro Martinez this season.
Getty LOSER: Mykhailo Mudryk
Mykhailo Mudryk left the field to warm applause, which was unsurprising. Chelsea's fans were keen to both acknowledge his effort and give him some much-needed encouragement ahead of what feels like a make-or-break campaign for the Ukrainian.
However, his performance rather summed up his Stamford Bridge career to date: there were flashes of quality but zero end product. The brutal truth is that his replacement, Raheem Sterling, did more during his time on the field than Mudryk had managed in the preceding 77 minutes.
With new signing Pedro Neto in attendance, it really is hard to see the painfully ineffective Mudryk extending his stay at Chelsea beyond next summer unless he finally starts delivering assists and goals.
