5 Things Learned From Chelsea's 3-3 Draw vs Johor Darul Ta'zim In Pre-Season | OneFootball

Chelsea's pre-season tour of Australia and Asia has now come to an end. Video Credit: Absolute Chelsea

Chelsea ended their pre-season tour of Asia with a 3-3 draw against Johor Darul Ta'zim on Sunday evening in Malaysia.

It was a surprisingly thrilling affair with six goals as the sides could not be separated at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium.

After making 11 changes to the starting XI, Chelsea struggled to get to grips with the game against the Malaysian Super League champions.

14 minutes into the pre-season friendly, Chelsea were behind. Tosin Adarabioyo failed to stop the through ball into Marcos Guilherme, who managed to square it to Arif Aiman, who found the back of the net.

Oscar Arribas proved a real threat for JDT, but it was Chelsea who managed to get back into the game three minutes before half-time. Liam Delap won a penalty after drawing a foul from Kevin Medina, and the 23-year-old converted with no mistake to level the scores.

Gabriel Slonina was brought on at half-time for Teddy Sharman-Lowe, and he was called into action immediately to make a fine save to deny Shahab Zahedi from restoring the hosts' lead.

It was Chelsea who scored the third goal of the game to complete the comeback and take the lead just after the hour mark. Chelsea won another penalty, this time through Jamie Gittens, and Delap bagged his second from the spot, sending Hazmi the wrong way.

Delap's fortunes reverted three minutes later. Arribas finally got his deserved goal to level the scores again, with his free-kick deflecting off Delap's back to wrong-foot Slonina in the 65th minute.

JDT thought they won the game in the 86th minute as substitute Bergson fired into the bottom corner, punishing a Dario Essugo mistake.

But Chelsea substitute Mykhailo Mudryk delivered a stunning cross three minutes later, which was put into the back of the net by JDT defender Antonio Glauder to ensure the Blues avoided defeat.

Here are five things learned from Chelsea's final game in Asia against Johor Darul Ta'zim.

Although Chelsea played against Spurs, who were reduced to 10-men following Kevin Danso's pull back on Joao Pedro who was through on goal during their time in Australia, the Blues' games have been pretty calm in terms of it being a friendly.

However, the game in Malaysia was anything but that. There was a real edge to the friendly. Plenty of fouls, arguments and yellow cards for both sides.

Luckily for Chelsea, they did not see red at all, nor did they pick up any injuries following strong challenges. They did receive a setback to Aaron Anselmino, discussed below, but Alonso will be pleased to have heard the full-time whistle.

The 21-year-old was forced off during the first half after pulling up with what looked to be a hamstring injury.

Anselmino has struggled with injuries in recent seasons since his arrival from Boca Juniors in 2024.

As pre-season progressed, although his future was unclear as to whether he would depart on loan, he offered Chelsea a suitable option at the back.

But he pulled up against JDT and looked to be on the verge of tears as he was replaced by Reggie Watson. Anselmino wanted to stay on, but Alonso insisted he come off - clearly not wanting to aggravate the injury.

He will now be hoping the extent of the problem is severe, otherwise any plans for regular minutes - whether at Chelsea or elsewhere - next season will be in huge jeopardy.

Delap is playing in the second game against JDT, which suggests he is not the preferred striker, even a back-up, for the 2026/27 season. His future is unclear amid interest from several Premier League clubs. Delap wants to stay after an injury-hit first season in west London.

Although they were both from the penalty spot, Delap will be pleased to have scored a couple of goals to put him on Alonso's radar. He had a couple of other chances in the first-half but was unable to find the net.

His fellow striker, Nicolas Jackson, linked up well as he started from the beginning, following his bench appearance against Milan. He teed up Delap, as mentioned, on a couple of occasions, unlucky not to have grabbed some goal contributions.

Jackson is leaving Chelsea with a real decision to make amidst his £65 million price-tag as to whether the club decide to keep or sell this summer.

Struggles on display noticeable - lack of discipline returns, but justified?

Having made a full change to the team following the AC Milan win, Alonso will have hoped for a smooth transition.

However, JDT exposed what Chelsea already knew from last season, as it carried over into pre-season.

Tosin continued to struggle at the back. Despite offering experience given his age and being a popular figure in the dressing room, his issues at the back - whether dealing with counter-attacks or playing out from the back were noticeable.

Meanwhile, straight after scoring Chelsea's first-half equaliser, Delap was up to his old antics. When his teammate Jamie Gittens was fouled, Delap opted to get involved and was subsequently booked for dissent. There was no real need for the forward to get involved, suggesting he hasn't learned his lessons from last season.

Estevao and Tosin were also booked later in the game for letting out their frustrations in their respective situations, showing Alonso he still has work to do. Estevao was denied a penalty, while Tosin, along with the rest of the players, was unhappy with a foul committed on his teammate Delap.

But you could also say it was a positive that Chelsea were sticking up for each other given the challenges on display.

Jackson, Quenda and Reggie Watson were also shown yellow cards for fouls.

The end of the overseas pre-season tour

Chelsea now return to England following a just-over-two-week tour of Australia and Asia, as their five-game schedule concluded in Malaysia.

It was Alonso's first since taking charge of Chelsea this summer and he will be hoping his side are almost ready for the new season.

They have one final game against Real Sociedad on August 15. Alonso will be looking forward to returning to Cobham for a settled week of training without the need for flights and travel.