Chelsea fans have a sense of optimism following the appointment of Xabi Alonso, however Michael Owen believes it will be a while before they are competing for the Premier League again.
The Blues managed to convince their number one target to take over the permanent role from next season, with Calum McFarlane in charge for the last game of the 2025/26 campaign.
Chelsea still have a chance of qualifying for European football for next season, however some are of the belief they would be better without any distractions for Alonso’s first campaign.
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Michael Owen believes it will take five years before Chelsea win the league with Xabi Alonso
Instead, they will be hopeful that they can significantly close the gap to Arsenal, who were crowned Premier League champions minutes before Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Tottenham.
However, Michael Owen believes that it is going to be at least five years before they have a chance to win the title, presuming things go well with Alonso at the helm.
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He told Premier League Productions: “Chelsea, You know, they’re miles away from it at the moment. That’s going to be years before they can build.
“They might have to do an Arsenal and and come second and second and second. You know, that could be five years if things go well. You know, you can’t just do it like that. This is a building block. This is a hard league to win.”
Chelsea’s best finish since BlueCo took over was last season, where they finished fourth, alongside winning the Conference League and Club World Cup.
They could end up in seventh this season, although could equally fall as low as 13th if results don’t go their way on the final day of the campaign.
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Alonso already planning for next season
Alonso has already been in discussions regarding the current squad, and what kind of players he wants to bring in this summer.
Alonso wants two new centre-backs when he joins the club, giving him the opportunity to operate in a back three system that he thrived with at Bayer Leverkusen.
Levi Colwill looks set to become a key player for years to come at Stamford Bridge, and Jorrel Hato is increasing his chances of featuring regularly every single time he plays.
Chelsea fans will be well aware of the other positions they need to strengthen this season, including left winger following the poor starts to life for Alejandro Garnacho and Jamie Gittens.
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