Xabi Alonso’s first game as Chelsea manager was supposed to be a tune-up. A friendly against an Australian A-League side in late July. A chance to test new tactics and give young players run. It turned into a complete circus, and only one man kept it from being an embarrassment.
João Pedro scored three times in the final 20 minutes to flip a 4-3 deficit into a 6-4 win over Western Sydney Wanderers. The Brazilian forward didn’t just rescue the result. He announced that Chelsea’s attack might actually be something to watch this season.
But before that, things got ugly. Real ugly.
Teenager Starts Strong, Then Chaos
Dastan Satpaev, a 17-year-old making his debut for the Blues, scored the opener. It was a nice moment, the kind of thing preseason friendlies are supposed to produce. Then the Wanderers scored twice in quick succession. Chelsea looked soft at the back, the same problem that haunted them last season. They couldn’t string passes together, couldn’t clear their lines, and suddenly they were down 2-1.
Dário Essugo leveled it before halftime with a well-worked team goal, and maybe you thought Chelsea would steady themselves. Nope.
Dylan Scicluna put Western Sydney back in front after the break. Jamie Gittens answered almost immediately. Then Awan Lual scored again for the Wanderers, and Chelsea fans on social media started losing it. There were jokes about Alonso’s first day looking like a disaster. There were complaints about the defense. There was a lot of shouting.
João Pedro Takes Over
With around 20 minutes left and Chelsea trailing 4-3, João Pedro just decided he wasn’t losing a friendly on the other side of the world. He grabbed the equalizer first, a poacher’s finish in the box. Then he put Chelsea ahead with a shot that the keeper probably should’ve saved but didn’t. And then he completed the hat trick with a clinical strike in stoppage time that made the final scoreline look way more comfortable than the actual game felt.
Six goals. Four lead changes. One hat trick that saved the narrative of Alonso’s debut.
It’s worth noting that Western Sydney Wanderers aren’t exactly a powerhouse. They’re a mid-table A-League team. Chelsea should not need a late hat trick from their star forward to beat them. But preseason results don’t matter much, and Alonso will take the win however it comes.
The bigger takeaway might be that Chelsea’s defense still looks shaky. They conceded four goals to a team that finished seventh in Australia last season. That’s a problem. Alonso has work to do before the Premier League starts.
Chelsea play Tottenham in Sydney on Saturday. That should be a better test. Or another disaster. Hard to tell with this team.
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