Xabi Alonso walked through the doors at Stamford Bridge knowing the clock was already ticking. The Spaniard has arrived at Chelsea with ambitions of success but cannot be sure how long he will be given to truly change the culture — a curse that has swallowed every manager before him. No Chelsea boss has lasted more than two years since Antonio Conte, who also won the club its last Premier League title. Four managers have left mid-season in the past five years.
Alonso joins after Chelsea plummeted to 10th last season, missing out on European football entirely while squad discipline waned. The task is clear: build a new culture and deliver results the ownership desperately crave. But patience is scarce.
“Xabi Alonso faces uncertain future at Chelsea after signing for crisis-hit club.”
“Time will tell,” Alonso said. “What I'm sure is that we have the ambition to win a lot of games, to be competitive. We need to take important decisions. We need to build strong principles and strong mentality and culture in the club. And time will tell.”
He arrives as probably the hottest property on the managerial market, fresh from an invincible Bundesliga title with Bayer Leverkusen that ended Bayern Munich’s reign of terror. One more win in Dublin would have delivered an unprecedented unbeaten treble, until Atalanta spoiled the party in the Europa League final. His ill-fated seven-month spell at Real Madrid should not cloud that achievement.
Yet the question is what Alonso saw in Chelsea rather than vice versa, with bubbling fan mutiny against BlueCo hardly acting as a selling point. He was widely tipped to return to Liverpool, the club where he won the Champions League as a player, but instead chose west London.
“I think that it was, when we started talking, it was a good moment, a good opportunity to come,” Alonso explained. “I don't think that we are that far to creating a good team, to competing in any game and to win a lot of games. Honestly, I think that. For sure last year, some things happened. I positively think that we can do much better, change a few things for sure, updating and reinforcing in some positions. If we get the right balance and the right decisions, we can have a good season. I'm optimistic and really believe it. I don't think that we need to change everything.”
Alonso will not predict what happens in May. “I'm not going to say what will happen in May. For me, it's absolutely too early to say that, but I'm confident, I'm optimistic to think that we can have a great season.”
What happens next is unknown. But the clock is ticking.
