Former Chelsea defender Marcel Desailly believes Xabi Alonso must have the freedom and authority to fully implement his football philosophy in order to succeed at Stamford Bridge.
Desailly stressed that Alonso’s strict adherence to his structure and tactics is critical and he requires total authority to impose this.
Despite a difficult season, Desailly believes Alonso has the pedigree to challenge for the Premier League title, provided the club stops loaning out players and makes targeted signings.
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“The problem he is facing is coming into a club that is completely full of players. When you look at Chelsea today, they must have something like 75 players around the world who still have a contract with the club,” Desailly told Standard Sport.
“How do you allow a coach to define and organise his philosophy around the specific players he wants to put into the system?
“He really has to sit down with himself and erase the players who do not match his philosophy. But it is super difficult with Chelsea because they have so many players already. How do you get rid of them to build your system?”
The Blues are coming off the back of a miserable season that saw them finish 10th in the Premier League and miss out European football for only the second time since 2016-17.
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The season was characterised by a lack of consistency, which many have blamed on a lack of experienced players in the team, with Chelsea boasting the youngest squad in the Premier League this season.
Alonso does not officially begin his tenure as Chelsea manager until July 1st but will be working on who he wants behind the scenes and that players he will aim to sign especially as the World Cup approaches.
Chelsea first travel to Australia for friendlies against Western Sydney Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur before the season starts, as he gets a good look at his side.
