Chelsea vs Wrexham. Friendly Match.
Kenan Memorial Stadium.
Match report as Christopher Nkunku, Ian Maatsen, Conor Gallagher and Ben Chilwell score in Mauricio Pochettino's first game in charge of Chelsea, a 5-0 thrashing of Ryan Reynolds' side Wrexham in North Carolina
Thursday 20 July 2023 08:40, UK
New signing Christopher Nkunku was among the goalscorers as Chelsea romped to a 5-0 win over Ryan Reynolds' League Two side Wrexham in the first game of their US tour.
Mauricio Pochettino took to the dugout for the first time as Blues boss having named a youthful starting XI, but did include new summer arrival Nicolas Jackson in attack.
The Senegal international took little time to make his mark, skipping past a challenge in the third minute before squaring for Ian Maatsen to slot home.
Dutch left-back Maatsen, 21, doubled his tally before half-time as he exchanged passes with Carney Chukwuemeka and struck a crisp effort home from 18 yards.
Nkunku was one of a number of new arrivals at the interval as Pochettino gave more of his experienced heads time to impress.
Even so, it took until the 80th minute for them to add to their lead when Conor Gallagher's drive made it three following good work from fellow half-time substitute Raheem Sterling.
Nkunku's goal came in the final minute of normal time when the French forward raced past goalkeeper Rob Lainton to fire home.
There was still time for another goal, with Ben Chilwell on target deep into stoppage time after latching onto a defence-splitting pass from another new signing, Angelo Gabriel.
Pochettino's starting XI had an average age barely over 19 years old, and the new head coach paid tribute to their quality in producing a professional performance in front of 50,000 fans in North Carolina.
"It is good to have the opportunity to see all these young guys who can show their quality," he told Chelsea's official website. "It is important for them and for us to have a real assessment. For sure all have quality, they need time and space to show they can compete for a place in the squad.
"The profile is very good, [Andrey Santos and Cesare Casadei] and Carney (Chukwuemeka). They have the profile, only they need time.
"They are young and we cannot forget we are in Chelsea, the pressure is always to win. They need to have the place, to have time to evolve. But yes, the profile is good."
Mauricio Pochettino will take charge of Chelsea for the first time when they start the 2023/24 Premier League season at home to Liverpool, live on Sky Sports, on Sunday August 13.
Chelsea then head to London rivals West Ham on August 19 before welcoming newly promoted Luton Town to Stamford Bridge on August 26.
Pochettino will visit his former club Tottenham on November 4 with the return fixture scheduled for February 24.
The first-ever Premier League Summer Series in the USA featuring Chelsea, Newcastle, Brighton, Fulham, Brentford and Aston Villa will be broadcast live on Sky Sports.
Five east coast states will host the nine-game friendly tournament from July 23 to 30 in preparation for the new Premier League season.
Each team will play three matches and will not face the same opposition more than once.
Matches will take place at five venues down the east coast: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia; Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta; Exploria Stadium, Orlando; Red Bull Arena, New Jersey; FedExField, Landover, Maryland.
