Alonso: Potential of young squad attracted me to Chelsea

Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.

Xabi Alonso says the potential in Chelsea’s young squad was a key factor that enticed him to take the manager’s job at Stamford Bridge.

Alonso agreed a four-year contract with the Blues in May and formally took the reins on Thursday, as their players returned for pre-season training. 

The arrival of the former Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid boss comes off the back of a tumultuous season in which Chelsea parted company with Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior, with Calum McFarlane having two spells as interim manager, the second of which included a 1-0 defeat to Manchester City in the FA Cup final.

Alonso built his managerial reputation in Germany, leading Leverkusen to an unbeaten Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal double in 2023-24, though they did lose the Europa League final to Atalanta.

The Spaniard then lasted just half a season at Madrid, though, with rumours of unrest behind the scenes leading to his dismissal in January after winning 24 of his 34 matches (70.6%). 

Alonso’s historic links with Liverpool, for whom he made 210 appearances as a player between 2004 and 2009, ensured there were eyebrows raised when he joined Chelsea.

But with the Todd Boehly regime having spent over £1.5billion on transfers since 2022, mostly on young players, Alonso is excited by the tools at his disposal.

“To be part of this club, it’s a great club, one of the best in the world, with great success over the last few decades,” he told Chelsea’s website.

“It’s a big privilege to be part of it, and now I’m looking forward to the challenge.

“The message is we want to share that belief that good things will come if we are together, and we create this strength.

“It has to come from us to bring the energy, but together, we can achieve great things in the coming years.

“The potential of the team and squad made me very excited to find a squad I can work with, create a football idea and bring excitement to the stadium and connect with the fans.”

Chelsea have already been busy in the transfer market, bringing in Marco Palestra and seeing Geovany Quenda arrive in a pre-agreed deal, with those two fees totalling £91m (€107m).

The average age of the players used by Chelsea in the Premier League last season was 25 years and 12 days.

Throughout the season, 16 different players who are currently under the age of 24 got minutes for Chelsea, who did not hand a single minute to a player aged 30 or above.

Moreover, of the 10 players who played the most minutes for the Blues, seven had joined the club before turning 24.

Alonso’s first competitive game at the helm will be a short trip across west London on August 24 to face Fulham, who recently appointed his Madrid successor, Alvaro Arbeloa.

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