Xabi Alonso
Xabi Alonso was an animated figure during Chelsea's pre-season defeat to Tottenham(Image: Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC)
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Chelsea were beaten, unofficially, for the first time in Xabi Alonso's tenure on Saturday evening in Sydney, Australia, as local rivals Tottenham netted a stoppage-time winner at the Accor Stadium.
More than 10,000 miles from London, Spurs recorded a rare victory over their city rivals. Alonso was disappointed, not overly so given the nature of the game, but it is a feeling he will not want to become accustomed to. Especially against Tottenham.
After two games in the last week, Chelsea leave Sydney to fly to Hong Kong for the second leg of their pre-season tour. Before we look ahead, though, we must look back at what happened on Saturday night. Bobby Vincent has some of the main talking points below:
Alonso an animated figure
Alonso is such a cool, calm and composed figure, so it was a bit strange to see him animated down on the touchline at the Accor Stadium. It was something we were warned about pre Alonso arriving at Stamford Bridge; he is a passionate character despite his relaxed nature.
Such was the sloppiness shown from his Chelsea side Down Under that Alonso could not relax. Instead, the Spaniard was on his players non-stop, especially in the first-half.
Explaining why his Chelsea team struggled to keep possession in the opening 45 minutes, the manager said: "Well, there were momentums for everything. I've said that the first half was really tight, with some moments that we could have kept the ball a little bit more, so especially in those last 10 minutes of the first-half, we were not able to hold the ball that much, but we were not conceding, so this is the game, you don't always have the control, and not to lose your shape, not to lose your plan in those moments, it was important.
"And after the second half, the context has changed completely, with 10 men, we have been really close to scoring, but again, you want to win, but this is not important. It will come when we will be a little bit more frustrated for losing points. Not yet."
Lacroix transfer vindication
Anyone that has watched Chelsea over the past 12 months - or even longer if you really started to analyse it - will tell you that a top-class centre-back is required to reach the next level. Levi Colwill is outstanding; one of the best in his position in the Premier League, but he is not a miracle worker.
Alonso, who recently told football.london that ideally he wants "four or five" central defenders in his Chelsea squad by the time the summer transfer window shuts, will welcome Maxence Lacroix to Cobham when the team fly back to the UK next week. The France international has signed a long-term contract at Stamford Bridge after the Blues agreed a £52million deal with Crystal Palace last month.
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Based off this summer's evidence, Alonso may well use a four-back formation as Chelsea manager. If that is the case then it looks as if it will be Lacroix alongside Colwill. We have been told for a while now that Chelsea are seeking the perfect long-term partner for Colwill and they may well have got it in Lacroix - or so they hope.
It’s a shame Alonso won’t get the chance to work with Lacroix during the tour due to the Frenchman being given an extended break after his World Cup exploits. But Alonso will already be thinking about the future of his defence with Lacroix and Colwill in the middle.
Maxence Lacroix
Chelsea's new centre-back Maxence Lacroix(Image: Chris Lee - Chelsea FC)
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Gittens continues resurgence
It is all starting to make sense now; why Chelsea paid £52m to Borussia Dortmund last summer to bring Jamie Gittens to Stamford Bridge. You would have been forgiven for wondering exactly why he cost such a fee just from last season's evidence.
Jamie Gittens
Jamie Gittens has been in sparkling form for Chelsea in pre-season(Image: Brendon Thorne)
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After scoring in three consecutive matches - including the back-to-back behind-closed-door friendlies - Gittens' encouraging form carried on in Sydney. While it took a big deflection, the 21-year-old winger recorded the assist for Estevao Willian's goal in the first-half.
Even without the assist, Gittens looked, for the most part, Chelsea's most threatening attacking player. It will be interesting to ask Alonso a question later on in this tour regarding the former Dortmund man and what he has told him. Whatever it is, it is working.
Penders incoming
Robert Sanchez missed last night's match due to a minor injury and will be assessed in Hong Kong before a decision is made on whether the goalkeeper can feature versus Juventus. Either way, Alonso might be keen to have a close look at Mike Penders, who is set to join up with the Chelsea squad next week.
"Mike is joining us in Hong Kong, and Robert has a minor [injury], not a big thing, but not for today, and we'll have to wait until, let's see, for the next week," said Alonso. "We need to go assessing almost day by day, but there was no point of taking risks today."
Mike Penders before the FIFA World Cup 2026 Quarter Final match between Spain and Belgium at Los Angeles Stadium.
Mike Penders will compete with Robert Sanchez as first choice goalkeeper at Chelsea in the upcoming season.(Image: Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)
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In both of their absences, Teddy Sharman-Lowe quietly had a good game in Sydney. The 23-year-old goalkeeper kept Chelsea in the game in the first-half with a fine stop to prevent a fantastic solo goal from Mathys Tel.
Mudryk warning issued
After Friday's big news that Mykhailo Mudryk is able to play competitive football for Chelsea again, Alonso made some really interesting comments regarding the Ukrainian winger. Of course Alonso sounded really supportive of the 25-year-old, who has not played a match since November 2024, but he also confessed he is surprise to have him available to use in Hong Kong and onwards.
Alonso said: "To be honest, we were not expecting to have this great news at this moment, so we are very happy. We feel that he will be working with us."
Mudryk is set to fly out to Hong Kong in the coming days to join up with the Chelsea squad. Alonso and his coaching staff will take a closer look at the winger before deciding on his future this summer.