Free European football comes to the EBB Stadium next month, as Chelsea Under 21s host PSV Eindhoven on Thursday 3 March in the semi-final of the Premier League International Cup.
The Dutch club’s reserve team, known as Jong PSV, currently sit 10th in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch professional football. Their current squad features two full internationals, in Icelandic defender Hjörtur Hermannsson and Montenegrin winger Aleksandar Boljevic. Boljevic, along with fellow winger Steven Bergwijn, have also made their first team debuts for PSV.
The squad also includes five Netherlands Under 21 internationals, as well as Serbian Under 21 and Peruvian Under 20 international, and many Dutch youth internationals. Jong PSV have previously produced players of the calibre of Klaas-Jan Huntelaar (76 international caps, Real Madrid, AC Milan), Ibrahim Afellay (51 international caps, Stoke City, Barcelona) and Wilfred Bouma (37 international caps, Aston Villa), and Boudewijn Zenden (54 international caps, Chelsea, Liverpool, Barcelona).
Chelsea finished second to Benfica in Group A of the competition, with Jong PSV also second to Villarreal in Group C. In the quarter-finals, Chelsea thrashed Tottenham Hotspur 5-2, whilst PSV beat Sunderland 1-0. The tournament’s top scorer is Chelsea midfielder Kasey Palmer, with five.
Kick-off at the EBB Stadium is 7.05pm.
