Mason Burstow's late goal ensures Chelsea's pre-season tour unbeaten run stayed intact
Aug 03, 2023
Chicago [US], August 3 : A goal each from Chelsea and Dortmund in the final ten minutes of the game resulted in a 1-1 draw in the final game of the Blues unbeaten pre-season tour of the USA on Thursday at Soldier Field.
Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino named a strong starting XI which saw Reece James leading the side and was part of a back four that included Thiago Silva, Levi Colwill and Ben Chilwell.
Enzo Fernandez and Conor Gallagher were deployed in the midfield. Raheem Sterling, Carney Chukwuemeka and Christopher Nkunku were used behind Nicolas Jackson carrying the attacking threat for the Blues.
Chelsea dominated the Bundesliga outfit for the majority of the first half. Yet they were unable to pierce through Dortmund's resolute defence even after creating a good number of chances.
Among those several opportunities, the first one fell to Jackson. He exchanged passes with Nkunku to advance the play into the Dortmund penalty area. He fired a shot powerfully towards the goal, only to be denied by goalkeeper Alexander Meyer.
Colwill who recently signed a six-year contract with Chelsea had the opportunity to fire Chelsea ahead from a close range but Meyer once again stood strong to deny Chelsea the lead.
Nukunku fell down to the turf and was replaced by the youngster Mykhailo Mudryk. After Nkunku's injury, the intensity of the game dropped, yet Chelsea continued to create chances.
Mudryk tried to make something happen on the pitch and he was merely successful as his shot was a few inches away from the back of the net.
Dortmund went against the run of play, as Marius Wolf found the back of the net from a closer range. Chelsea were on the verge of conceding their first defeat, but Burstow ensured that his team remained unbeaten for the entire tour.
Following a free kick, Fernandez headed the ball towards the young striker, who guided the ball into the corner to earn the Blues a draw.