📂 Categoría: Football,Premier League | 📅 Fecha: 1778964501
🔍 En este artículo:
Chelsea have pulled off a major coup by landing Xabi Alonso as their new manager.
However, their limp FA Cup final defeat to Manchester City lays bare the huge job the Spaniard has taken on to try and restore the Blues to their former glories.
It was not so much that Chelsea were awful and it took a moment of magic from Antoine Semenyo to end their hopes of rescuing a truly dismal season with a trophy.
But under rookie interim boss Calum McFarlane they named a team including SIX defenders that gave off the vibe of having an underdog mentality not befitting of a club who proudly claim to be ‘World Champions.’
World Champions … but only in name?
Yes, McFarlane can point to a couple of strong penalty shouts waved away, yet over the course of 90 plus minutes his team mustered only one shot on target.
That is simply never going to be enough to beat a City outfit who remain in with an outside chance of adding the Premier League title to a domestic cup double.
Opting for a club tracksuit rather than the traditional cup final suit, McFarlane looked a little over-awed by the occasion as he stood arms folded during the pre-match national anthem.
For much of the contest his players also showed an inferiority complex, epitomised by passing all the way back to their own penalty area, which sparked loud boos from their section of supporters.
They seemed too intent on stopping City’s man of the moment Jeremy Doku and Semenyo to actually impose themselves on their opponents.
In fairness there was a spell either side of half time when McFarlane’s men actually looked the better side, but lacked the quality to seriously trouble City’s cup goalkeeper James Trafford.
Can Alonso sprinkle stardust on attacking woes?
Joao Pedro has had a productive first season at Stamford Bridge, but the Brazilian cannot carry the goalscoring burden on his own.
Pedro hobbled off towards the end of the game to be replaced by fellow summer signing Liam Delap.
One wayward header from the former Ipswich man when he should have at least tested Trafford is a microcosm of his Chelsea career and showed why he is likely to be moved on in the sumer.
Whereas Pep Guardiola called Rayan Cherki off the bench at half-time to provide extra attacking spark, Chelsea could only throw on an out-of-sorts Pedro Neto and the ineffective Alejandro Garnacho in a futile attempt to chase an equaliser.
A squad that has cost a billion pounds to assemble is woefully short of genuine stardust. How many of the players Alonso will be managing would get into City’s best team?
Levi Colwill getting another 90 minutes under his belt in front of watching England manager Thomas Tuchel was one big positive.
Colwill played a part in making sure Erling Haaland’s cup final goal drought extended to nine games, but the Norwegian did set up Semenyo’s nonchalant back-heel winner.
A fully fit Colwill will be a major plus for Alonso, but he needs an experienced partner in the Thiago Silva mould alongside him.
Alonso also needs to find a way to get Cole Palmer back to his best after an underwhelming campaign that has put his place in England’s World Cup squad in jeopardy.
The City academy product once again underwhelmed against his former club.
Fofana’s act sums up Blues’ attitude issue
Ex-Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen chief Alonso is inheriting a team with an attitude problem, summed up by Marc Cucurella almost talking his way into an early yellow card for brainlessly berating an assistant referee.
I also witnessed Wesley Fofana attempt to lead his teammates back to the dressing room as City were going up to collect their winners’ medals before being called back onto the pitch by Palmer to observe the trophy lift.
Even the prospect of appointing Alonso did not spare owners Blueco from fan protests outside Wembley.
Hiring the Bundesliga winner signals the Stamford Bridge hierarchy are starting to realise the error of their ways and he will be given more say in the running of the club than many of his numerous predecessors.
But the road back to the top feels a long one.
Chelsea have pulled off a major coup by landing Xabi Alonso as their new manager.
However, their limp FA Cup final defeat to Manchester City lays bare the huge job the Spaniard has taken on to try and restore the Blues to their former glories.
It was not so much that Chelsea were awful and it took a moment of magic from Antoine Semenyo to end their hopes of rescuing a truly dismal season with a trophy.
But under rookie interim boss Calum McFarlane they named a team including SIX defenders that gave off the vibe of having an underdog mentality not befitting of a club who proudly claim to be ‘World Champions.’
World Champions … but only in name?
Yes, McFarlane can point to a couple of strong penalty shouts waved away, yet over the course of 90 plus minutes his team mustered only one shot on target.
That is simply never going to be enough to beat a City outfit who remain in with an outside chance of adding the Premier League title to a domestic cup double.
Opting for a club tracksuit rather than the traditional cup final suit, McFarlane looked a little over-awed by the occasion as he stood arms folded during the pre-match national anthem.
For much of the contest his players also showed an inferiority complex, epitomised by passing all the way back to their own penalty area, which sparked loud boos from their section of supporters.
They seemed too intent on stopping City’s man of the moment Jeremy Doku and Semenyo to actually impose themselves on their opponents.
In fairness there was a spell either side of half time when McFarlane’s men actually looked the better side, but lacked the quality to seriously trouble City’s cup goalkeeper James Trafford.
Can Alonso sprinkle stardust on attacking woes?
Joao Pedro has had a productive first season at Stamford Bridge, but the Brazilian cannot carry the goalscoring burden on his own.
Pedro hobbled off towards the end of the game to be replaced by fellow summer signing Liam Delap.
One wayward header from the former Ipswich man when he should have at least tested Trafford is a microcosm of his Chelsea career and showed why he is likely to be moved on in the sumer.
Whereas Pep Guardiola called Rayan Cherki off the bench at half-time to provide extra attacking spark, Chelsea could only throw on an out-of-sorts Pedro Neto and the ineffective Alejandro Garnacho in a futile attempt to chase an equaliser.
A squad that has cost a billion pounds to assemble is woefully short of genuine stardust. How many of the players Alonso will be managing would get into City’s best team?
Levi Colwill getting another 90 minutes under his belt in front of watching England manager Thomas Tuchel was one big positive.
Colwill played a part in making sure Erling Haaland’s cup final goal drought extended to nine games, but the Norwegian did set up Semenyo’s nonchalant back-heel winner.
A fully fit Colwill will be a major plus for Alonso, but he needs an experienced partner in the Thiago Silva mould alongside him.
Alonso also needs to find a way to get Cole Palmer back to his best after an underwhelming campaign that has put his place in England’s World Cup squad in jeopardy.
The City academy product once again underwhelmed against his former club.
Fofana’s act sums up Blues’ attitude issue
Ex-Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen chief Alonso is inheriting a team with an attitude problem, summed up by Marc Cucurella almost talking his way into an early yellow card for brainlessly berating an assistant referee.
I also witnessed Wesley Fofana attempt to lead his teammates back to the dressing room as City were going up to collect their winners’ medals before being called back onto the pitch by Palmer to observe the trophy lift.
Even the prospect of appointing Alonso did not spare owners Blueco from fan protests outside Wembley.
Hiring the Bundesliga winner signals the Stamford Bridge hierarchy are starting to realise the error of their ways and he will be given more say in the running of the club than many of his numerous predecessors.
But the road back to the top feels a long one.
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- Este artículo cubre aspectos importantes sobre Football,Premier League
- Información verificada y traducida de fuente confiable
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📚 Información de la Fuente
| 📰 Publicación: | talksport.com |
| ✍️ Autor: | Alex Conrad |
| 📅 Fecha Original: | 2026-05-16 20:16:00 |
| 🔗 Enlace: | Ver artículo original |
Nota de transparencia: Este artículo ha sido traducido y adaptado del inglés al español para facilitar su comprensión. El contenido se mantiene fiel a la fuente original, disponible en el enlace proporcionado arriba.
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