Real Madrid are a lot better than Chelsea; we didn’t need a pre-season friendly to tell us that. Tuesday’s 2-1 win for Los Blancos in Charlotte, though, proved just how big that gap was. Madrid, even with star players still not back from post-tournament holidays, are ready for their season to start. Chelsea? Not even close.
Lucas Vazquez opened the scoring for Madrid here, although Dani Ceballos claimed that he got the final touch. Brahim Diaz then made it 2-0, rounding new Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen to cap what was a Man-of-the-Match performance. Noni Madueke did pull one back before half-time to maintain his good pre-season scoring run, but it proved to be merely a consolation.
Madrid’s season officially starts on August 14 when they take on Atalanta in the UEFA Super Cup. Chelsea’s, meanwhile, begins four days later against Manchester City in the Premier League. On this evidence, one team is ready for their first competitive assignment, and the other couldn’t be further away.
WINNER: Vinicius Junior
He came off the bench against Barcelona this past weekend, but this was his first start of the preseason and, if this was any indication, Vini is ready to play.
The Brazilian star was unplayable in the first half as he ran Chelsea’s defense ragged. He created several chances all on his own and provided a spectacular trivela assist on Diaz’s goal. If something good was happening for Real Madrid, Vini was usually at the center of it.
It’s scary to think that this year he’ll actually be under less pressure. With all eyes on Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius may even have more space to run and more chances to make magic.
If he’s this good without Mbappe, the thought of him playing next to him is frightening. Defenders, be warned; this won’t be easy.