{
  "id": 316419,
  "title": "Garcia hopes long-term friend Alonso's Chelsea finish second to Liverpool",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/garcia-hopes-long-term-friend-alonsos-chelsea-finish-second-to",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-08T16:45:47.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "BBC Sport",
    "slug": "bbc-sport",
    "url": "https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c4gj9j7yv9do?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Chelsea's new manager Xabi Alonso will reunite with former Liverpool teammate Luis Garcia during the club's pre-season tour in Malaysia. The two Spaniards, who signed for Liverpool together in 2004, are set to face each other once more at Johor Darul Ta zim's Sultan Ibrahim Stadium. Garcia, who now serves as the chief executive of JDT, expressed his excitement about the upcoming match, emphasizing the significance of challenging Chelsea in the Asian continent. Despite acknowledging the difficulty of facing Alonso, Garcia hopes the Chelsea team finishes second to Liverpool in the season. Meanwhile, JDT has been on a record-breaking 108-game unbeaten run, and the team aims to compete in the Asian Champions League, currently facing a gap in budgets compared to European clubs.",
  "summary": "As two Liverpool legends meet in pre-season, Luis Garcia says he hopes Xabi Alonso's Chelsea finish behind their former club in the Premier League.",
  "key_points": [
    "Xabi Alonso and Luis Garcia reunite at Chelsea's pre-season tour in Malaysia",
    "Garcia hopes Chelsea finishes second to Liverpool in the season",
    "JDT on record-breaking 108-game unbeaten run, seeks Asian Champions League"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "BBC Sport Football",
        "title": "Garcia hopes long-term friend Alonso's Chelsea finish second to Liverpool",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/08/garcia-hopes-long-term-friend-alonsos-chelsea-finish-second-to-316458",
        "published": "2026-08-08T16:45:47.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}