**Xabi Alonso believes Chelsea will be ready to make a strong start to the Premier League season despite admitting his team still have plenty of work to do in pre-season.**
Alonso has now spent just over three weeks working with his squad, with Chelsea facing Western Sydney Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur during the Australian leg of their summer tour.
Attention has now turned to Wednesday’s friendly against Juventus in Hong Kong before Chelsea eventually return to England and prepare for their Premier League opener against Fulham.
Speaking to [Chelsea’s official website](https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/article/alonso-the-feeling-is-that-we-will-start-in-a-good-way?utm_source=chatgpt.com), Alonso admitted the Blues are not yet where he expects them to be when competitive football begins.
However, the Spaniard remains encouraged by what he has seen.
“I have confidence, motivation and a good feeling with the team,” Alonso said.
He added: “The feeling is that we will start in a good way.”
> 🚨🔵 Xabi Alonso on Mykhailo Mudryk's future: “No decision has been made”.
>
> “Everything has happened so quickly. We need to be sensitive of the situation”. [pic.twitter.com/9iOAxHh7st](https://t.co/9iOAxHh7st)