EUROPA League winners Chelsea will visit Reading at the Madejski Stadium to play a pre-season friendly a week before the start of the Championship season.
The Royals will be in for a tough test as they take on Chelsea on Sunday 28th July at 3pm, a side that finished third in last season’s Premier League table and were also victorious in the Europa League.
Chelsea are expected to bring a range of stars to the Madejski including N’Golo Kante, David Luiz, Olivier Giroud and new signing Christian Pulisic- however it is unclear who will be in charge of the London club amid uncertainty and speculation regarding manager Maurizio Sarri’s future.
The Championship side will commence the week after on Saturday 3rd August where Jose Gomes will take charge of his first full season with Reading.
The two sides produced a thriller the last time they met at the Madejski Stadium in the Premier League in January 2013. Juan Mata opened the scoring on the stroke of half time for the Blues before Frank Lampard doubled Chelsea’s lead.
But a dramatic late fightback from the Royals earned an unlikely draw as super-sub Adam Le Fondre snatched a goal three minutes before time to give Reading hope.
And what was virtually the last kick of the match, Le Fondre volleyed in an equaliser as Brian McDermott’s side rescued a point.
Reading will spend two weeks of their pre-season campaign at a training camp in Spain where they will play a number of friendly matches before they return to England to face Chelsea.
