Kenan Yildiz Returns to Juventus Squad for Pre-Season Clash with Chelsea
Kenan Yildiz is back in a Juventus squad, and that alone gives this pre-season date with Chelsea in Hong Kong a touch more edge than the usual July run-out.
The 19-year-old has not played a minute for the Bianconeri this summer after returning from the World Cup with lingering concerns over his knee and overall fitness. Juventus have handled him carefully. Here, at the Kai Tak Stadium on Wednesday afternoon, he is finally on the teamsheet again, named among Luciano Spalletti’s substitutes and expected to see the field after the break.
For a player whose rise has been rapid and relentless, even a short spell on the sidelines feels like an interruption. This friendly offers a soft re-entry: a long way from Turin, under less pressure, but with plenty of eyes watching how he moves, how he trusts that knee, how quickly he finds his rhythm again.
Milik’s chance, new faces held back
Spalletti has resisted the temptation to throw in the big summer names from the start. Neither Randal Kolo Muani nor Kerim Alajbegovic makes the Juventus XI in Hong Kong, both held in reserve as the staff manage minutes and workloads.
Their absence clears the stage for a veteran. Arkadiusz Milik leads the line, a reminder that pre-season is also about old hands proving they still belong. The Pole will have support from Jeremie Boga and Fabio Miretti, an intriguing blend of direct dribbling and midfield craft behind him.
In the middle of the pitch, Douglas Luiz steps straight into the Juventus engine room. The Brazilian lines up alongside captain Manuel Locatelli, a partnership that could define the Bianconeri’s tempo when the competitive games arrive. Out wide, Andrea Cambiaso and summer signing Zeki Celik operate as wing-backs, charged with stretching the play and feeding Milik.
Behind them, a back three of Pierre Kalulu, Federico Gatti and Lloyd Kelly shields goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio. It is a structure built for control, but also for experimentation. Pre-season is where combinations are tested and hierarchies begin to form.
Juventus XI (3-4-2-1): Di Gregorio; Kalulu, Gatti, Kelly; Celik, Locatelli, D. Luiz, Cambiaso; Miretti, Boga; Milik.
Palestra steps into the spotlight
On the other side, Chelsea arrive with a different kind of intrigue. Marco Palestra, the Italy international signed from Atalanta in a €60m deal earlier in the summer, starts. It is a significant early show of faith and a clear signal of his role under Xabi Alonso.
The Blues are missing Levi Colwill and Cole Palmer as a precaution, but the squad depth shows. Mykhailo Mudryk, only recently back, has to settle for a place among a substitutes bench that stretches to 21 options. This is a tour game, but it is also a live laboratory for Alonso.
At the sharp end, new recruit Danny Welbeck walks straight into the attack. The experienced forward leads the line in a 4-2-3-1, supported by Joao Pedro, Jamie Gittens and Geovany Quenda. It is a front four with energy and movement, designed to ask questions of that Juventus back three from the first whistle.
Moises Caicedo anchors the midfield alongside Nicoll-Jazuli, tasked with controlling transitions and feeding the creative line. Behind them, a back four of Palestra, Tosin Adarabioyo, Wesley Fofana and Jorrel Hato lines up in front of goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.
Chelsea XI (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; Palestra, Tosin, Fofana, Hato; Nicoll-Jazuli, Caicedo; Quenda, J. Pedro, Gittens; Welbeck.
Subs: TBC.
A friendly with subplots
Kick-off is set for 12.30 BST, an early start for those watching from Europe, but the storylines stretch well beyond the time zone.
For Juventus, this is about more than fitness. It is about seeing Douglas Luiz in black and white, understanding how Celik fits the wing-back role, and, above all, watching Kenan Yildiz take those first, careful steps back into action.
For Chelsea, it is another data point in the Xabi Alonso era: Palestra bedding in, Welbeck’s immediate impact, and a long bench full of players jostling for status before the real season begins.
In Hong Kong, under the heavy summer heat, a so-called friendly suddenly feels like an early glimpse into how both clubs intend to shape their year.
