Chelsea will look to hit the ground running in their opening Club World Cup clash against home favourites Los Angeles tonight.
The Blues are one of just two Premier League representatives in the new-look competition, having won it under its old format in 2022.
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The Londoners became world champions for the first time after edging to a 2-1 extra-time win over Palmeiras three years ago.
Enzo Maresca’s men are now among the favourites for glory this summer, following their Conference League triumph last month.
The Club World Cup’s $1billion prize purse represents a massive opportunity for big-spending Chelsea to deepen their ranks.
The Stamford Bridge outfit have already added £30million striker Liam Delap to their squad for their assault on the US tournament.
Opponents LAFC, who boast former Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud in their ranks, currently sit fifth in the MLS Western Conference.
Chelsea vs Los Angeles: How to watch
This Group D match will take place on Monday, June 16, with kick-off set for 8pm UK time.
Channel 5 will show 23 of the 63 matches from the Club World Cup on free-to-air terrestrial TV in the UK, and this will be one of them.
Coverage of Chelsea vs Los Angeles will begin an hour before kick-off at 7pm, before it is immediately followed by Boca Juniors v Benfica.
All Chelsea matches will also still be available to stream for FREE on DAZN, existing members can jump straight into all of the action.
If you are not subscribed, you can sign up for a free DAZN account with no hidden costs or fees. More details can be found here.
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Chelsea vs Los Angeles: talkSPORT coverage
talkSPORT will have EXCLUSIVE radio coverage from the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
Commentary will come from Joe Shennan and former Chelsea defender Scott Minto.
To tune in to talkSPORT or talkSPORT 2 through the website, click HERE for the live stream.
You can also listen via the talkSPORT app, on DAB digital radio, through your smart speaker and on 1089 or 1053 AM.
talkSPORT.com will keep you up to date with all the latest news and reaction from the Club World Cup, including Chelsea vs LAFC.
Visit talkSPORT BET for all the latest odds and bet boosts.
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Chelsea vs Los Angeles: Teams
Chelsea XI: Sanchez, James, Tosin, Colwill, Cucurella, Caicedo, Lavia, Neto, Palmer, Madueke, Jackson.
Subs: Jorgensen, Acheampong, Anselmino, Badiashile, Chalobah, Gusto, Sarr, Santos, Dewsbury-Hall, Essugo, Fernandez, George, Guiu, Nkunku, Delap.
LAFC XI: Lloris, Palencia, Long, Segura, Hollingshead, Jesus, Tillman, Delgado, Ordaz, Bouanga, Ebobisse.
Subs: Hasel, Ochoa, Chanot, Marlon, Tafari, Amaya, Holm, Raposo, Saldana, Yeboah, Giroud, Morales, Wibowo.
Chelsea vs Los Angeles: What has been said?
Maresca: “We had a few days off [after the Conference League final] and some new players have arrived, so when we saw each other three or four days ago at Cobham, the feeling was a little bit like when you return for pre-season.
“But the first thing I said, and the main message since we returned, is that we are not here for pre-season, it’s a big, big tournament.
“We achieved something important by finishing in the top four in the Premier League, and we won the European competition we were in. But now that is done, finished, and we have to focus on the competition we are in now.
“We had one competition this season, the Conference League, and the most difficult thing was convincing the players that it was the game of the season for our opponents, so if you don’t prepare in the right way, you can be in trouble.
“Tomorrow we have a difficult game and if we are not ready and prepared, we can be in trouble. So we must prepare 100%.
“And no matter who the other team is, when you are a Chelsea player or head coach, you need to win games. So hopefully, we can start tomorrow’s competition by winning the game.”
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