Thomas Tuchel and his Chelsea squad have landed in Los Angeles, and the pre-season tour of the USA is now underway. The Blues name their 29-man group for the trip on Saturday afternoon as the contingent of the group who had participated in international matches during the summer finally joined up to truly get preparations underway.
Three names conspicuous by their absence on that list were Ruben Loftus-Cheek and N'Golo Kante. The duo were unable to head across the Atlantic due to their vaccination status, meaning they are removed from the first team group at a crucial stage of preparation and will miss friendlies against Club America, Charlotte and Arsenal.
There are less than four weeks until the Premier League season kicks off, and the next 14 days will be spent in the USA. The Blues do have a fixture against Udinese following the club's return from the USA, but it's undeniable that the time across the pond will be crucial ahead of the new season.
