Following the announcement from Chelsea that Xabi Alonso will be the new manager at Stamford Bridge starting this summer, the Premier League club has also revealed details about their upcoming preseason tour as they prepare for the 2026-27 season.
Could this be the first major challenge for Alonso, who previously managed Real Madrid, against a team that hasn’t lost a league match in five years?
Chelsea’s preseason schedule includes matches against A-League team Western Sydney Wanderers and their local rivals Tottenham Hotspur (both in Sydney), as well as Serie A teams Juventus (in Hong Kong) and AC Milan (in Jakarta). They will also return to Malaysia for the first time since 2013 to face Johor Darul Ta’zim, the champions of the Malaysia Super League.
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– JDT among the most dominant teams globally
– How Ronaldo aims to secure his first major trophy in five years
While storied European clubs like Spurs, Juve, and Milan will provide Chelsea with familiar competition, none have a record quite like JDT, who they will meet at Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Iskandar Puteri on August 11.
Domestic Dominance
The Southern Tigers are renowned for their domestic supremacy, having secured the last 12 Malaysia Super League titles, along with five Malaysia Cups and FA Cups each. Their impressive rise to prominence came after Tunku Ismail Idris, the Crown Prince of Johor, transformed Johor FC into the new identity of JDT back in 2013. They clinched their first top-flight league title the following year and have not looked back since.
With Tunku Ismail willing to invest heavily, JDT has not only become a leading name in domestic football but is also establishing itself in Asian football. Notable players such as Pablo Aimar, Dani Güiza, Jesé, and Samu Castillejo have all represented JDT.
Since their debut in the AFC Champions League Elite in 2019, Asia’s premier club competition, the Southern Tigers have reached the knockout stage three times, including a first-ever quarterfinal this season.
On the Brink of Records
JDT’s success has escalated in recent years, completing the domestic treble in each of the last three seasons, with a fourth within reach if they can overcome Kuching City in the Malaysia Cup final this Saturday.
As they maintain their dominance in the Malaysia Super League with an unbeaten streak since April 2021, JDT stands on the cusp of a significant global achievement.
Earlier this month, they matched the world record of 108 league matches without defeat, previously held by Ivorian team ASEC Mimosas from 1989 to 1994, after a stunning 14-1 victory over Kelantan TRW. With the end of their league season, JDT’s chance to break this record will come in the next season’s opener.
Before that, they are set to host Chelsea in a high-profile friendly. While it may be just a friendly, JDT will aim to impress against a prominent European side. Their last encounter with a major team, in November 2022, ended in a 4-1 defeat to Borussia Dortmund, albeit with several key players missing as they prepared for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
By the time Chelsea faces JDT, Alonso might have already encountered other remarkable opponents during their preseason tour. However, none can boast an unbeaten league run of five years or be on the edge of setting a new world record.