Fernandez’s focus on Fulham amid transfer speculation, says Alonso

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

Xabi Alonso reaffirmed that Enzo Fernandez is still a Chelsea player and said that the Argentine was preparing as normal for the Blues’ Premier League opener. 

Fernandez’s future at Stamford Bridge has been up in the air for some time following comments he made during the 2025-26 season, when Liam Rosenior was in charge. 

The 25-year-old hinted at a potential move to Real Madrid, resulting in him being dropped by Chelsea, though Los Blancos denied being in contact over a move. 

Manchester City, who are now managed by former Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca, are also keen on signing the midfielder, but reportedly missed the deadline of last Friday to meet the Blues’ £120m valuation of the Argentina international. 

Since arriving at Chelsea from Benfica in January 2023, in what was then a Premier League-record deal, Fernandez has made 169 appearances in all competitions. 

No Premier League player played more games in all competitions than Fernandez’s 61 in 2025-26 (including the Club World Cup), while his 26 goal contributions (16 goals, 10 assists) were only bettered by Joao Pedro (29) for Chelsea.

Chelsea’s Premier League campaign begins on Monday against London rivals Fulham, and Alonso said Fernandez was preparing for the Blues’ trip to Craven Cottage. 

“Enzo is a Chelsea player. He’s a top, top player,” Alonso told reporters.

“He’s training really well since he started 10 days ago with the team, very integrated. We’re happy with him, and he’s getting ready for Monday.

When questioned further, Alonso added: “He’s training really well, good attitude and that’s what we want. He’s trying his best to prepare for the kick-off of the Premier League.”

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 19, 2026

Chelsea are preparing for their first season under Alonso after a dismal campaign in 2025-26 that saw them miss out on Europe and finish 10th in the Premier League. 

But the Blues have been busy in the summer transfer market so far, with the likes of Morgan Rogers, Maxence Lacroix, Marco Palestra and Geovany Quenda all joining. 

And with no European football to contend with, many have predicted Chelsea to thrive under Alonso, who has experience in Europe with Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid. 

The Opta supercomputer has assigned Chelsea a 23.7% chance of finishing in the Champions League places, while the likelihood of the Blues winning the title is 3.8%. 

“The ambition is to be as high as possible. Let’s see where we are in May,” Alonso said when asked whether finishing in the top four was essential for Chelsea this season. 

“The hunger to have success, the ambition to do well, to create good spirit and energy within the team, that’s the first goal as it helps you be competitive and win more games.”

Alonso is set to be the 27th manager to take charge of at least one Premier League game with Chelsea – overtaking Tottenham (26) as the most by any side (counting joint-managers as one) against Fulham next week. 

Just two of the Blues’ last eight managers have won their first league game in charge (D4 L2), although both were in London derbies – Graham Potter v Crystal Palace in October 2022, and Liam Rosenior v Brentford in January 2026.

Chelsea have failed to win their opening game of the Premier League season in each of the last three seasons (D2 L1), though Alonso feels his team are in a good place. 

“We feel ready. We have prepared the whole pre-season with some players from the first day, other ones coming later, but the desire, the ambition, the hunger to start the Premier League is already in the building each training [session] and we’re looking forward to it.”

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