Alonso hails 'emotional' Mudryk return in Chelsea's 1-0 loss to Juventus

Mykhailo Mudryk made his long-awaited return to the pitch as a second-half substitute, but could not prevent Chelsea losing 1-0 to Juventus at Kai Tak Stadium.

The Ukrainian international came on for Nicolas Jackson in the 82nd minute, drawing applause from his teammates and loud cheers from Chelsea fans in the 43,575 crowd. Mudryk had not played since November 2024 because of a doping ban, but won permission to resume his football career on Friday after a successful appeal.

"Really pleased for him. It was emotional for everyone from the club to see him back," Alonso told reporters. "He was thrilled, for sure. After such a long period, to be back on the pitch, it was a great feeling for him."

Despite a lively cameo on the left, Mudryk could not stop Juventus taking the spoils courtesy of a wonderful second-half strike from Kosovo international Edon Zhegrova.

Neither side found a breakthrough in a drab first half as two experimental line-ups struggled to create clear-cut chances. Danny Welbeck could have scored on his Chelsea debut, but the veteran England striker failed to direct a flicked header on target after 11 minutes.

Juventus came closest a few minutes before the break when Jeremie Boga took aim from just outside the penalty area, forcing Blues keeper Robert Sanchez into a diving save.

Early in the second period a long ball from Chelsea skipper Moises Caicedo put full-back Marco Palestra in on goal, but his tame shot could not beat Mattia Perin.

The deadlock broke in the 68th minute when Kenan Yildiz squared for Zhegrova, who curled a stunning strike into the top corner from outside the box. Both sides rang the changes but Chelsea could not find a cutting edge.

"I think we started pretty well. The first 30, 35 minutes, we have played with good control, we have created a few chances," Alonso said. "And the second half, there were many changes. The game was not that controlled and stable with all the substitutions. Unluckily, we didn't get to win, but for sure, it's the process, it's minutes for everyone."

Chelsea left both Cole Palmer and Levi Colwill out of the matchday squad, with Alonso saying Palmer had suffered some discomfort after a knock in Saturday's match against Tottenham in Sydney. The Spanish coach said it was not a recurrence of the groin injury that sidelined him for much of last season, and that he should be available for the next friendly.

Chelsea play AC Milan in Jakarta on Saturday, before rounding off pre-season against Malaysia's Johor Darul Ta'zim and Spain's Real Sociedad. They face Fulham at Craven Cottage on Aug 24. Juventus travel to Australia for friendlies against Inter Milan and Palermo before opening their Serie A season at Frosinone on Aug 23.