Xabi Alonso still not satisfied with incomplete squad just weeks before kicking off Premier League

Things are looking up at Stamford Bridge after a wretched season that saw three different managers patrol the touchline in a campaign that left The Blues without European soccer. Xabi Alonso has come in hoping to bring some consistency to the dressing room, but says his squad is yet to be completed.

Chelsea start season under Alonso

Alonso is currently on his first preseason tour with Chelsea after agreeing to join the London based club soon after the final game of a disastrous Premier League season. Alonso came in looking to change the culture from top to bottom, and the front offices seem to have given him the keys to the car.

Chelsea played their first friendly with Alonso on the touchline early today, beating Western Sydney Wanderers 6-4 in Australia. When asked about who could be coming and going in what’s left of the transfer market, Alonso gave a precautionary statement, “I’m sure that from today until the last day of the transfer [window] there will be a lot of rumours,” warned the former Bayer Leverkusen boss.

The questions come after reports of Chelsea’s rumored interest in veterans of the Premier League, Jordan Henderson and Danny Welbeck. “It’s going to be a hard task, but for sure we need proper balance in terms of qualities, in terms of positions, in terms of balance,” said Alonso.

Alonso eyeing seasoned vets?

Chelsea has had a strategy of betting on young players and either loaning them out or putting them through a trail by fire in the first team. It has been a tough process that has been less than successful and the fans started to turn on the board, taking to the streets in protest towards the end of last season.

While Alonso didn’t comment on the potential interest of Welbeck and Henderson, he did say that the squad still needs to touching up, which could lead to some deals being made it the next few weeks. “We want to have a complete squad and we want to make a good team. For that we have an idea, we have a plan and let’s see how we set it up until the start of the Premier League,” concluded the new Chelsea boss.

There have already been some big signings with Alonso pulling the strings in the background. Marco Palestra was the first transfer brought to Stamford Bridge after Alonso was appointed manager. The right back from Atalanta was brought in to replace Maru Cucurella who was lured by Alonso former club, Real Madrid. Morgan Rogers broke the record for most expensive transfer for an English player, after Chelsea paid Aston Villa $156 million.

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