TEAM NEWS – Lyon substitutes: Rafael; Christopher Martins Pereira; Mathieu Gorgelin, Jordan Ferri, Martin Terrier, Oumar Solet Bomawoko, Amine Gouiri, Pape Diop, Kenny Tete.
TEAM NEWS – Lyon (4-3-3): Anthony Lopes; Leo Dubois, Jeremy Morel, Marcelo, Ferland Mendy; Tanguy Ndombele, Lucas Tousart, Houssem Aouar; Bertrand Traore, Mariano Diaz, Memphis Depay.
While Courtois will surely be plying his trade elsewhere soon enough, Chelsea are able to welcome back star men Hazard, Kante and Giroud following their World Cup exploits. Willian, who was linked with a move to Barcelona earlier in the window, starts on the right.
Madrid’s Mateo Kovacic could well join Chelsea as part of the deal for Courtois, and that possible incoming would surely mean at least two midfielders will have to be sold or loaned out by Chelsea. Bakayoko and Drinkwater look the most likely candidates, while Loftus-Cheek has also attracted interest, and all three have been handed a chance to impress tonight.
TEAM NEWS – Chelsea substitutes: Antonio Rudiger, Charly Musonda, Ross Barkley, Eden Hazard, Lucas Piano, Marcos Alonso, Bradley Collins, Cesar Azpilicueta, Alvaro Morata, David Luiz, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Jorginho, Cesc Fabregas, Rob Green, Gary Cahil, N’Golo Kante, Olivier Giroud, Michy Batshuayi, Pedro.
TEAM NEWS – Chelsea (4-3-3): Marcin Bulka; Davide Zappacosta, Andreas Christensen, Ethan Ampadu, Emerson; Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Danny Drinkwater; Victor Moses, Tammy Abraham, Willian.
Overall, it has been a rather indifferent pre-season in terms of results for Sarri’s side, who were soundly beaten 2-0 by Manchester City in the FA Community Shield on Sunday, and they will be looking for a return to winning ways tonight, although Lyon will present a tough test.
The Chelsea goalkeeper has been AWOL from training over the past couple of days and is not in the squad today, as he reportedly looks to force through a move to Real Madrid. That has forced the Blues into action, with the London club reportedly agreeing a world record £71 million fee with Athletic Bilbao to sign Spain goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga.
It’s a final chance for Chelsea’s players to impress new boss Mauricio Sarri ahead of the Premier League opener against Huddersfield Town on Saturday, but this game has been rather overshadowed by transfer speculation regarding Thibaut Courtois.
Hello and welcome to LIVE coverage of Chelsea’s final pre-season friendly, as the Blues welcome Ligue 1 side Lyon to Stamford Bridge!
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A strong starting XI for Lyon, although coach Bruno Genesio is still without star man Nabil Fekir, who has been given an extended period of leave following France’s World Cup triumph. The playmaker, who almost signed for Liverpool earlier in the window, has also been linked with a move to Chelsea in recent days.