Boga scores as Chelsea draw in friendly

Jeremie Boga scored a brilliant late equaliser and Filipe Luis made a steady first appearance as a Chelsea team still without their World Cup stars drew 1-1 with Austrian side RZ Pellets.

The 17-year-old Frenchman came off the bench to cancel out Silvio de Oliveira’s opener and prevent a first pre-season defeat in the Blues’ third friendly.

Brazilian left-back Luis, a £16m summer signing from Atletico Madrid, was part of a strong back four that also featured Kurt Zouma, John Terry and Branislav Ivanovic.

They had little to do in an impressive first half and looked sharper, despite their hosts having kicked off their domestic season with a 4-1 win last weekend.

It was the Blues who looked far more likely to score, especially in the first half an hour as their youthful attacking quartet posed constant problems.

Lewis Baker, playing in the number 10 role, impressed during his 45-minute outing while Patrick Bamford showed good poise, touch and awareness throughout when leading the line.

Baker had a decent free-kick saved while Bamford shot just wide from a tight angle after some fine anticipation, and then teed up Izzy Brown who had his strike blocked.

Mohamed Salah saw a tame shot from the edge of the box easily saved, but the hosts improved after the interval and took the lead when di Oliveira’s shot was judged to have just crossed the line before Petr Cech could clear with his feet.

With several substitutions and Chelsea’s lack of sharpness seemingly beginning to tell, Cech – back in action after a shoulder injury – was forced to beat away a fierce shot and then produce a stunning one-handed save from a close-range header.

But Chelsea regrouped and Boga levelled after demonstrating superb strength to take advantage of a lucky ricochet and race through and coolly finish across the keeper.

Nathan Ake, Oriol Romeu, Andreas Christensen and Nathaniel Chalobah also came on during the second half and Marco van Ginkel also got valuable game time.

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