Xabi Alonso begins his role as Chelsea manager from the start of next month with the new Blues boss having plenty to do before he and the squad jet off to Australia in late-July
It is difficult to remember the last time a managerial appointment at Stamford Bridge has caused so much excitement. Xabi Alonso will officially begin his role as Chelsea manager on July 1; the start of the Spaniard’s four-year contract with the west London club.
The excitement stems from Alonso being one of the best midfielders of his generation during his playing days, but – more importantly – an extremely talented coach with a point to prove after his short Real Madrid tenure. Chelsea are aware of the level of coach they are bringing in this summer and the club’s actions suggest they are willing to give Alonso the keys to their multi-billion-pound supercar.
The Blues, sources say, will put all of their faith in the 44-year-old in this summer’s transfer window, with Alonso set to be given more power than his predecessors when it comes to the club’s recruitment.
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Chelsea believe Alonso is the perfect person to spearhead the ownership group’s ambitious long-term project. Sources close to Alonso’s appointment told football.london last month that the former Liverpool midfielder is aligned with the club’s sporting leadership team when it comes to the type of profile the Blues need to be signing over the coming months.
The club will be looking at adding top-level players this summer; footballers who have experience in dealing with some of the sport’s most difficult on-pitch challenges. Chelsea want to sign headstrong players that react positively to adversity because too often over the course of the 2025/26 season, Blues players let themselves down on the pitch.
Alonso wants to add ready-made winners to his squad – not too dissimilar to his vision during his days at Bayer Leverkusen. One of Alonso’s very first signings in his time at BayArena was bringing Granit Xhaka in from Arsenal – a ready-made, proven midfielder and he was an instant hit in Leverkusen.
Someone of Xhaka’s calibre and profile is – theoretically, at least – the type of player Chelsea will be looking at this summer. In an interview with Dr. Constantin Eckner, a football journalist who specialises in Bayer Leverkusen, football.london was told about Alonso’s influence when it came to transfer business with the German club.
Not only did he want to add winners to Leverkusen’s squad but the newly-appointed Chelsea boss helped get a double transfer over the line in the summer of 2023, with Nathan Tella and Alejandro Grimaldo both being lured by Alonso.
Eckner said: “The sporting director made the final decisions, as is the case with most Bundesliga sides, but Alonso had input. Especially in the months after his arrival until the summer transfer window, Alonso tried to make it clear towards Leverkusen’s hierarchy that he wanted players with a winning mentality.
“That led to the signing of Granit Xhaka and others. Alonso was also able to convince some players, e.g. Nathan Tella and Alejandro Grimaldo, of signing with Leverkusen. His reputation as a former world-class midfielder certainly helped.”
Chelsea anticipate Alonso having a similar impact this summer – and the club absolutely need that to be the case. With the Blues missing out on European qualification last season, it could put some transfer targets off choosing a move to Stamford Bridge.
At the moment, there are a lot of unknowns at Chelsea. We do not yet know the sort of system Alonso wants to play when he takes over. We do not yet know the players he will sign. We do not yet know the players he will keep. There are so many things still up in the air – and that’s what makes it so exciting.
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