Kenan Yildiz Returns to Juventus Squad Against Chelsea
Kenan Yildiz is back in a Juventus squad again, and the timing feels significant.
Under the thick Hong Kong humidity at Kai Tak Stadium, the 19-year-old forward returns to a matchday group for the first time since the World Cup, where a nagging knee and lingering fitness doubts kept him away from pre-season action. On Wednesday afternoon, he starts on the bench against Chelsea, but the plan is clear: the second half should finally bring his first minutes of the summer.
For Juventus, that in itself is a storyline.
Yildiz waits, Milik starts
Luciano Spalletti has resisted the temptation to rush Yildiz. The Turkey international, who featured at the FIFA World Cup 2026 in the Group D clash against USA in Los Angeles, has been handled cautiously since coming back from that tournament. Now he sits among the substitutes, ready to rejoin a side that is still being pieced together.
Up front, the stage instead belongs to Arkadiusz Milik. The veteran centre-forward, often the man in the shadows of bigger names, gets a rare chance to lead the line from the first whistle. He will have Jeremie Boga and Fabio Miretti buzzing around him, tasked with providing the service and the spark.
Two of the club’s headline arrivals, Randal Kolo Muani and Kerim Alajbegovic, are absent from the starting XI. Their time will come. For this game, Spalletti leans on familiarity and structure.
Behind Milik, Juventus line up in a 3-4-2-1. Michele Di Gregorio starts in goal, protected by a back three of Pierre Kalulu, Federico Gatti and Lloyd Kelly. Out wide, Zeki Celik, one of the summer recruits, begins at wing-back on one flank, with Andrea Cambiaso on the other.
In the middle, Douglas Luiz makes his presence felt alongside captain Manuel Locatelli, a pairing that hints at how Juventus might balance bite and control in the season ahead.
Palestra steps into the spotlight
On the other side, Chelsea arrive with their own new face in focus.
Marco Palestra, the Italy international signed from Atalanta in a €60m move earlier in the summer, goes straight into the starting line-up. It is a bold call, but a telling one. Chelsea did not spend that kind of money for him to ease gently into life in blue.
He starts in a 4-2-3-1, stationed in the back line ahead of goalkeeper Robert Sanchez. Alongside him, Chelsea field Tosin Adarabioyo and Wesley Fofana, with Jorrel Hato completing a youthful, athletic defensive unit.
In midfield, the double pivot of Nicoll-Jazuli and Moises Caicedo offers legs and aggression, a screen in front of the defence and a launchpad for the attack. Ahead of them, Geovany Quenda, Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens line up behind the central striker.
That striker? Danny Welbeck, the new recruit who walks straight into Xabi Alonso’s attack. It is a statement of trust from the coach and a reminder that, even in a pre-season friendly, reputations and roles are being shaped.
Chelsea travel light in terms of risk. Levi Colwill and Cole Palmer sit this one out as a precaution. The squad is deep enough to absorb their absence. Mykhailo Mudryk, only recently back, waits among the substitutes, one of 21 options available from the bench.
Heavy benches, light on excuses
Both clubs arrive in Hong Kong with swollen squads and different agendas.
For Chelsea, this is about sharpening Alonso’s ideas, bedding in Palestra and Welbeck, and managing minutes for a group still settling after another busy window. The number of substitutes tells its own story: this is pre-season, but every spell on the pitch matters.
For Juventus, the afternoon carries an extra layer. They are integrating Douglas Luiz and Celik, testing combinations around Locatelli, and handing Milik a platform. Above all, they are watching Yildiz.
Kick-off is set for 12.30 BST. Under the glare of an Asian tour crowd and the scrutiny that always follows these two clubs, one question lingers.
How long will Spalletti wait before turning to the teenager whose return everyone came to see?
