The Spanish coach inherited an enormous squad when he began working at Cobham and ended the summer with a much smaller group, essentially two players for every position and several major decisions that completely changed the structure of the team.
Xabi Alonso Transforms Chelsea in a Historic Transfer Window
Xabi Alonso’s first transfer window in charge of Chelsea delivered much more than a collection of new signings.
According to Sky Sports, the movement of players also allowed Chelsea to close the transfer window with historic numbers. The Blues collected around €476 million from sales, including add-ons, a record figure for an English club in a single window.
And remarkably, they managed to do it after also completing the most expensive signing in their history.
Chelsea Sold Like Never Before
The arrival of Morgan Rogers for approximately €138 million made it clear that Chelsea were not going to abandon their aggressive investment strategy.
The difference was what happened on the other side of the door.
Xabi Alonso quickly determined which players were part of his project and which ones could leave Stamford Bridge. The result was around 20 departures and, for the first time since the 2021-22 season, a positive transfer balance for the club.
The biggest deal arrived practically at the deadline.
Enzo Fernández, captain and one of the team’s biggest stars, ended up joining Manchester City for approximately €145 million, becoming one of the biggest transfers in English soccer history.
The plan was to use part of that money to bring in Lamine Camara from AS Monaco, but the deal collapsed in the final hours.
Chelsea, however, maintained their decision to allow Enzo Fernández to leave.
“We have to move forward,” Xabi Alonso explained ahead of the match against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium.
Xabi Alonso Cleared Out a Squad That Had More Than 40 Players
That was probably the most difficult task of the summer.
When preseason began, Xabi Alonso had more than 40 players at his disposal. By the time the transfer window closed, the first-team squad had been reduced to 26 players, not including academy prospects.
Among the most significant sales were Nicolas Jackson, Andrey Santos and Liam Delap, deals that generated major income for the club.
Marc Cucurella also departed, joining Real Madrid, while Marc Guiu continued his career with RB Leipzig.
The list was much longer.
Tyrique George ended up at Everton, Trevoh Chalobah moved to Como and Tosin Adarabioyo signed for Tottenham Hotspur. In addition, players such as Mykhailo Mudryk, Benoît Badiashile, Mamadou Sarr, Axel Disasi, Filip Jørgensen, Dário Essugo and Dastan Satpaev found different destinations through loan moves.
The idea was simple: fewer players and much clearer roles.
A Chelsea Squad Built for Xabi Alonso
The result is a squad that looks very different from the one the Spanish coach inherited.
Chelsea still have key figures such as Cole Palmer, João Pedro and Moisés Caicedo, but those players are now surrounded by new additions and young talents such as Morgan Rogers, Mike Penders, Valentín Barco and Geovany Quenda.
There is experience as well.
Emiliano “Dibu” Martínez, Danny Welbeck and Jordan Henderson provide veteran leadership to a group that still maintains a relatively young average age.
The departure of Enzo Fernández leaves an important question in midfield, especially after the move for Lamine Camara fell through. However, Xabi Alonso still has Caicedo, Barco, Henderson, Reece James and Roméo Lavia as options to build his usual double pivot.
“I think we can be very happy with the transfer window. From what we started talking about at the end of May and the beginning of June, we have achieved a large part of it,” Xabi Alonso said.
Without Europe, the Premier League Becomes the Main Objective
There is also one detail that could ultimately work in Chelsea’s favor.
The Blues will not compete in European competitions during the 2026-27 season.
While several of their main rivals will have to divide their efforts between the Premier League, domestic cups and UEFA competitions, Xabi Alonso will be able to work with his squad during full weeks for much of the season.
Chelsea spent heavily, sold even more and significantly reduced a squad that appeared almost impossible to manage at the beginning of the summer.
Now comes the truly important part.
Proving in the Premier League that all those moves were worth it.
