Chelsea recently announced their participation in a promotional tour of the United States in July and August leaving many people worried.
As the disaster of a campaign unfolded this season, many people attempted to provide answers to what was behind the team’s condition. One of the suggestions was the fact that Chelsea resumed for preseason too late and travelled too much across the globe. It is no surprise therefore that many are wondering if the club is not making a mistake by towing that path again.
Refuting the argument
A look at the roster for these tournaments shows that Chelsea is not alone. Other top teams take part yearly and none of them have gone on to implode as spectacularly as Chelsea has done this season.
Chelsea’s season has been one to forget. None of the top teams that took part in the global friendlies have delivered the sort of experience served by Chelsea to their fans.
The USA, Australia and Far East are huge markets that are still newcomers in terms of hooking on to European football. It is therefore only natural that the clubs will try to spread their brands to these regions in a bid to increase merchandise revenue. Most importantly, TV money in football would be nowhere near its current levels if foreign fans weren’t able to pay for the content in a way that would make it profitable for the companies concerned, to bid for rights every term.
So regardless of how these tours are perceived by fans and analysts, they are vital to the way football is run today.
Changes should be made
Although the argument that foreign tours influence performance holds no water, changes can be made to the number of these games that are to be played and the overall schedule. One mistake Chelsea made last year was to extend the campaign by two weeks to accommodate friendlies in Australia and going on to resume preseason late. This meant they only touched down in England three days before the season curtain raiser against Arsenal.
Such haphazard approach to scheduling contributed to a team that wasn’t able to hit the ground running when the season began. The lethargy was exploited by the better prepared teams and the club was promptly thrown into chaos.
At the time of writing, no other tours have been announced. Could they have learnt from the mistakes after all?
The 3 games in the USA will be played over the space of 7 days but they will be nothing more than a time to learn from the new manager and blend in with new teammates. The tours start two weeks after the Euros and end two weeks before the season. The time before and after the tour, is enough for Antonio Conte to work with players and transfer his ideas.
Exhibition games are here to stay and it is not a bad thing. If Chelsea doesn’t shoehorn more foreign fixtures into their schedule, they would have learnt their lessons from last season.
