da jogodeouro： Chelsea's new era begins in earnest as their pre-season tour gets underway, but who are the players who need to make a big impression in the USA?

da pinup bet： Chelsea have begun their preparations for the new season by heading on tour to the USA with a squad that is almost unrecognisable to the group that finished the last one. Plenty of new faces have arrived – including a new head coach – and even more have been shown the door.

Everyone associated with the club will be hoping for a much more enjoyable trip than their visit to the States a year ago, where their dreadful performances foreshadowed the nightmarish season they would endure on and off the pitch in 2022-23.

The scale of the task facing Mauricio Pochettino is significant, but there are plenty of individual players who will be feeling even more pressure to make an impact in the US. GOAL runs through those who will be out to prove a point…

GettyMykhailo Mudryk

Mykhailo Mudryk has taken plenty of flak having failed to live up to expectations in the aftermath of his big-money January move to Stamford Bridge, but he was always likely to require a significant period of adaptation.

The 22-year-old hadn't played a competitive game since November when he joined from Shakhtar, and the step up to the Premier League was inevitably a steep one from Ukraine's top flight. Throwing him into the melting pot of Chelsea's disastrous season was never going to result in immediate success.

A pre-season of pressure-free friendlies and ample time to get into the physical shape required for the rigours of the Premier League is exactly what Mudryk needs at this juncture, and both he and his club will hope he will be ready to begin the new season all guns blazing come August.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesLevi Colwill

Chelsea may well be fighting to keep Levi Colwill as he battles to make a first-team breakthrough. The classy centre-back is returning to the club off the back of a mightily impressive loan at Brighton, followed by a triumphant European Championship campaign with England's Under-21s.

His stock has never been higher, and despite his career being in its infancy he finds himself at a crossroads; stay and fight for his place at Stamford Bridge, or leave to join one of many suitors including Brighton and Liverpool. Chelsea will hope his intention is to remain with them, and pre-season will give him a platform to prove his worth.

He will be vying to claim the left centre-back spot, either in a back four or back three, and Benoit Badiashile's serious injury will aid his cause. If he gets his head down, there is no reason why he shouldn't be starting alongside Thiago Silva on the opening day of the season.

GettyConor Gallagher

This feels like a make or break summer for Conor Gallagher. Though he still hasn't fully nailed down a starting place in the Blues' line-up, the England international has no shortage of Premier League suitors. If certain reports to be believed, there is some willingness to do business on Chelsea's part as the prospect of Moises Caicedo's potential arrival looms.

As an academy graduate who seems to have tenacity in his blood, Gallagher will surely want to stay and fight for his place, and his boundless energy will almost certainly be to the liking of his new manager – but will there be room for him in Pochettino's preferred 4-2-3-1 shape?

A strong end to 2022-23 where he became a key player under Frank Lampard stands him in good stead, but Gallagher will know he faces a battle if he wants to keep his place as Chelsea continue their midfield revamp.

Getty ImagesMarc Cucurella

Chelsea believed they were signing a top-tier rotation option for Ben Chilwell when Marc Cucurella arrived for a cool £63 million ($83m) last summer, but he has – perhaps unsurprisingly – spectacularly failed to live up to that inflated price-tag.

It seems the defender's future is up in the air, amid recent suggestions that he could be another player whom the Blues will look to cut loose this summer in their ruthless clear-out. It has been reported that returning loanee Ian Maatsen will be given the opportunity to impress on the left flank, which piles the pressure onto Cucurella.

Whether he even wants to stay at Chelsea is unclear having failed to endear himself to the fans in 2022-23. But whatever his feelings at this stage, the Spaniard can use this time to either play himself into Pochettino's plans or put himself in the shop window.