“Chelsea is starting new season with good energy” – Alonso

New Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso says the club is beginning the new season with “good energy” as he looks to restore the Blues to the top of English football, though he declined to set specific targets for his first campaign in charge.

Mr Alonso, who officially assumed duty on 1 July, will take charge of his first competitive match on Tuesday when Chelsea face Western Sydney Wanderers in Sydney.

The Spaniard inherits a side that finished 10th in the Premier League last season and failed to qualify for European competition. Chelsea last won the league title in 2017 under Italian manager Antonio Conte.

Speaking on Monday, Mr Alonso expressed satisfaction with the attitude of his players and the progress made during pre-season following several new signings, including Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa.

“We want to build a competitive team. We are in that process. We have great quality, great talent,” Mr Alonso said.

“We need to know what it takes to compete in the Premier League, and we want to have a squad with the right balance between quality and mentality.

“But I think that we are starting the new season with good energy, that’s going to be important.”

Mr Alonso earned widespread acclaim after leading Bayer Leverkusen to an unbeaten Bundesliga and German Cup double during the 2023/24 season.

However, his spell at Real Madrid was short-lived. Appointed last year, Mr Alonso left the Spanish club in January after just seven months in charge.

Flexible tactical approach

Known for his possession-based style and successful 3-4-2-1 formation at Bayer Leverkusen, Mr Alonso said he would remain tactically flexible rather than overhaul Chelsea’s playing style.

“We will be flexible in our tactics, in our approaches, game plans,” he said.

“It’s not that I’m changing everything. It’s about updating. It’s about developing something that they have done with new concepts that each manager has.

“But the good thing is that many things that I like they have already done. So now it’s about changing or updating a few other things.”

‘Success will take time’

With several managers having failed to return Chelsea to Premier League glory since their last title triumph, pressure is already mounting on Mr Alonso to end the club’s trophy drought.

Despite expectations, the 44-year-old manager refused to define what would constitute a successful first season.

“I don’t want to talk too early about what’s our goal,” Mr Alonso said.

“We want to be as high as possible, and for that we need to work hard. We need to develop this team with new players, with new ideas, but sometimes it takes longer, sometimes it happens quicker.

“But so far, a good feeling, good energy. The players are working hard, and that’s what we want.”