Chelsea's opening Premier League game of the season is little over a week away and new manager Xabi Alonso would love to go into the campaign on a strong footing by beating Real Sociedad in a friendly at Stamford Bridge.
This will be the first time that the former Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid boss has taken charge of a Stamford Bridge fixture and, as the Blues' pre-season programme has involved a lot of travelling, they will be delighted to be back at their west London base.
Opponents Sociedad have already beaten Aston Villa and Wolves in practice outings this summer and would love to conquer another English side before they commence their La Liga campaign with a long trip to Real Betis next Friday.
Chelsea v Real Sociedad Tips Summary
Best Bet - Draw or Real Sociedad double chance @ 6/5
Alternative Bet - Orri Oskarsson to score at any time @ 2/1
Bet Builder - Both teams to score, Over 2 goals & Joao Pedro to score first Chelsea goal @ 9/2
Chelsea v Real Sociedad Prediction
Best Bet: Draw or Real Sociedad double chance @ 6/5
Chelsea are expected to enjoy a much better season than they did last term when they petered out to finish an underwhelming tenth, but their final friendly against Sociedad may not be straightforward.
The Premier League season starts with a game against west London neighbours Fulham on Monday 23rd August, but their pre-season has not been great apart from a noteworthy 3-0 win over AC Milan in Jakarta.
They drew their most recent game against Malaysian side Johor DT 3-3, when Liam Delap scored two penalties and before that they lost 1-0 to Juventus and 2-1 to ten-man Tottenham in Sydney.
The Blues have been racking up the air miles and it could be that Sociedad, who had a similarly average season in Spain - finishing tenth - are in better shape with their first league game against Betis next Friday.
The Spanish side have already beaten Villa and Wolves this summer and look set to get something at Stamford Bridge.
Alternative Bet: Orri Oskarsson to score at any time @ 2/1
Sociedad have yet to field striker Mikel Oyarzabal after he helped Spain to World Cup glory last month, but Iceland forward Orri Oskarsson has stated his case for a starting spot after some excellent performances.
He was on target in friendlies against La Liga new boys Racing Santander and in the matches against both Wolves and Villa.
Oskarsson has built upon a strong end to the league campaign when he established himself in the starting line-up and took his opportunity, scoring in four of his final five season appearances.
He had 12 shots on target in six end-of-season encounters and can make his mark again when he faces the Club World Cup champions.
Chelsea v Real Sociedad Bet Builder Tip
Both teams to score
Over 2 goals
Joao Pedro to score first Chelsea goal
Pays 9/2
There looks set to be plenty of goals in this one, with four of Chelsea's five friendlies this summer having featured more than two, including a 6-4 win over Western Sydney Wanderers when they were in action in Australia.
Alonso will want to see improvement from a defence who kept just one clean sheet in their final 22 games of the last campaign, but that could take a while to materialise, so over 2.5 goals should be combined with both teams scoring.
That happened in all but two of Sociedad's final eight league games of last season.
At the other end of the pitch, it looks likely that Joao Pedro will still be the main man up front for the Blues after he scored 15 goals in last term's league campaign.
He is already off the mark with a hat-trick against Western Sydney and a a brace in the 3-0 success over Milan, so don't be surprised if he pops up with his team's first goal, particularly as he was rested for their most recent outing.
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Key Match Stats
Four of Chelsea's five pre-season friendlies this summer have featured at least three goals
Chelsea lost seven of their final nine Premier League matches last season
The Blues kept just one clean sheet in their final 22 league games of last term
Real Sociedad failed to win any of their final eight La Liga matches last season
Both teams to score was a winning bet in six of Sociedad's last eight league outings
Sociedad have already beaten both Aston Villa and Wolves in friendlies this summer
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
