Xabi Alonso brings real promise but one glaring problem could jeopardise his Chelsea rebuild

SportFootballXabi Alonso brings real promise but one glaring problem could jeopardise his Chelsea rebuildAlonso could be nurturing one of the most dangerous attacks in the league but has a long-standing problem to solve at the other end of the pitchWill Castle at Craven Cottage Tuesday 25 August 2026 07:15 BSTBookmarkCommentsGo to commentsBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":true,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"b3038468","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/chelsea-fulham-xabi-alonso-robert-sanchez-cole-palmer-morgan-rogers-b3038468.html","title":"Xabi Alonso brings real promise but Chelsea still have one glaring problem to solve"}}CloseWhy Chelsea Think Morgan Rogers IS Worth £117mInside Sport newsletter: Get an expert guide to the biggest moments shaping the world of sportGet our free Inside Sport newsletterGet our free Inside Sport newsletterEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"pianoFieldName":"receiveInsideSportNews","regTitle":"Inside Sport","subscriptionGroup":"inside_sport","subscriptionGroupId":"9cec95c5-a973-40ac-9b05-03d636c07853","type":"sport","pathPrefix":["/sport","/f1"],"associatedAuthors":["Lawrence Ostlere","Kieran Jackson"],"title":"Inside Sport newsletter: Get an expert guide to the biggest moments shaping the world of sport","mobileTitle":"Get our free Inside Sport newsletter","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/InsideSport1_1.png","newsletterKey":"receiveInsideSport","regSourceSection":"Football","regSourceNewsletter":"NSC"},"isClimate":false}Xabi Alonso came to Craven Cottage hoping for another Premier League first. Twenty-two years earlier, he bagged his first English top-flight...