Photo: @cfcunofficial (Chelsea Debs) London / CC BY-SA 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons
Chelsea face Real Sociedad at Stamford Bridge on Saturday in a pre-season friendly — the second such meeting in the modern era between the two clubs. The fixture follows an identical pattern to the one played 12 years ago, which closed Chelsea's pre-season schedule in the summer after a FIFA World Cup, also at Stamford Bridge.
The 2014 edition marked the first time Chelsea had hosted a home friendly in SW6 since 2006. Jose Mourinho's side had played just 48 hours earlier, opening the Ferencvaros Stadium in Budapest with a 2-1 comeback win courtesy of goals from Ramires and Cesc Fabregas.
The match proved a landmark occasion: it was the first competitive appearance in Chelsea blue for three players who would go on to win back-to-back Premier League titles — Thibaut Courtois, Fabregas and Diego Costa. All three started in Mourinho's 4-2-3-1 formation.
Diego Costa needed just 58 seconds to make his mark, latching onto a flicked pass from Ramires to finish neatly across the keeper. Six minutes in, Schurrle struck the inside of the post from 20 yards, and the rebound fell for Costa to make it 2-0.
The scoring ended there, though Chelsea continued to create chances. Oscar forced a fine save, and Fernando Torres — on what would prove his final appearance at the Bridge before joining AC Milan — missed a good opportunity. Courtois was largely untroubled throughout.
"The squad has improved for sure," Mourinho said after the game. "The club were fantastic because they gave me the three targets I asked for. We have the squad we want to have, it's a squad for tomorrow, for next season, and also with big possibilities for the next few years."
Real Sociedad had arrived in London having finished seventh in La Liga, and without Antoine Griezmann — just sold to Atletico Madrid as a direct replacement for the departing Diego Costa — and injured forward Carlos Vela.
Chelsea's league campaign that season opened with a Monday-night away fixture at Burnley, where Costa scored and Fabregas delivered an iconic assist in a 3-1 win. The club went on to win two of the next three Premier League titles.