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Absolute Chelsea Four Things Learned From Chelsea's 3-1 Pre-Season Win Over Real Sociedad A positive end to Chelsea's pre-season friendly fixtures with several signings getting their first minutes in Blue. Chelsea secured a 3-1 win in their final pre-season game against Real Sociedad at Stamford Bridge on Saturday. Xabi Alonso made a few interesting decisions with his line-up, with Reece James starting in central midfield alongside Moises Caicedo. Marco Palestra also continued to play as a left wing-back rather than on the right, where Pedro Neto operated. It was still a very strong line-up, however, especially since both Maxence Lacroix and Morgan Rogers made their first pre-season appearances in Blue. Rogers also netted his first unofficial Chelsea goal, taking the lead for the home side in this game in the ninth minute with a tap-in. Real Sociedad goalkeeper Alex Remiro only managed to parry Joao Pedro’s close-range header from a Pedro Neto cross, and it was an easy finish for Chelsea’s club-record signing. Unfortunately, for Chelsea, Real Sociedad levelled the score just before half-time through defender Jon Aramburu’s superb volley into the bottom corner. Again, the Blues started the half really well after the break. Playing in midfield clearly did not affect James’ ability to deliver quality crosses into the box. The Chelsea captain found Joao Pedro, who did not miss his second chance to score from a header. The hosts retook the lead just two minutes into the second half. Chelsea looked even more dominant in this half, while Real Sociedad were forced to defend deeper and deeper. Joao Pedro scored his second goal, doubling Chelsea’s lead in the 77th minute thanks to Malo Gusto’s beautiful through ball from deep. Here are a few interesting points from Chelsea’s pre-season win over Real Sociedad. Holes remain in Chelsea’s defence Off the ball, Chelsea mostly played in a 5-3-2 formation, with Cole Palmer given the freedom to stay higher up the pitch alongside Joao Pedro. This provided Chelsea more counter-attacking threat, but also left quite some space in front of the back five for Sociedad to exploit. Sociedad even had more shots on target than the hosts in the first half, which was not a good sign. Things improved in the second half, but this is an area that Alonso will have to address ahead of the season-opener against Fulham on August 24. Not-so-warm reception for Enzo Fernandez After the hour mark, Alonso made several substitutions. Fernandez came on alongside Mike Penders, Malo Gusto, and Josh Acheampong for James, Lacroix, Sanchez, and Rogers. Boos could be heard from certain parts of the Stamford Bridge crowd as Fernandez made his way onto the pitch. On the bright side for the midfielder, some fans responded by chanting his name. Uncertainties surrounding the Argentina international have clearly made him a controversial figure at Stamford Bridge, especially with him being linked with a potential move to Premier League rivals Manchester City. Fernandez’s provocative goal celebration in Argentina’s win over England in the 2026 World Cup semifinal likely made him an unpopular figure in the country in general. He will likely have to get used to more boos and jeers throughout the season. Pedro Neto’s versatility still proved handy When Chelsea made these four substitutions, Alonso decided to keep the team’s shape. Fernandez slotted in central midfield, Penders in goal, Acheampong at the back, Gusto at right wing-back. This means Neto had to play as the left-sided number 10 next to Palmer. He only spent about 13 minutes in this role before being replaced by Jamie Gittens in the 76th, but Neto’s versatility gave Alonso the flexibility with his substitutions. Joao Pedro’s impressive consistency Bagging two more goals in this game, Joao Pedro now has seven goals from five appearances (four starts) in pre-season. If there were any doubts about who should lead Chelsea’s attacking line this season, the Brazil international’s pre-season performance has clearly put an end to it.