What Cole Palmer just said about Xabi Alonso should really excite Chelsea fans

Cole Palmer almost took a bit of a back seat on Saturday as Joao Pedro and Jordan Henderson stole the headlines with a brace apiece, as Xabi Alonso’s Chelsea got back to winning ways on Saturday.

After defeats to Arsenal and Brentford and a frustrating 2-2 draw against Hull, Chelsea needed to get back to winning ways on Saturday afternoon. They did, with an enormous 5-1 win over Bournemouth.

Henderson was the unlikely hero, with two goals and an assist. Pedro also scored twice, while Morgan Rogers got his name on the score sheet. Pedro Neto, Pep Chavarria and Cole Palmer got an assist.

Yes, Bournemouth have been poor this season, and on Saturday, they were without star man Alex Scott. But it was a proper performance from Chelsea, with Moises Caicedo’s return heralded as the key.

Speaking after the game, Palmer was quoted by Chelsea’s website as saying that the Chelsea squad are still adapting and only just starting to get to grips with what Alonso is requesting of his new team.

“It’s still early with the manager, and he’s still trying to get his ideas across, but we’re starting to adapt and especially this week we’ve been working on ideas and stuff like that, so it’s been good,” he said.

That should be really exciting for Chelsea fans. If this side is still only just learning the ropes of what Alonso wants from his players, and is still adapting, imagine what they can do when it’s second nature.

It could be seen as, why haven’t they adapted yet? Why are they not rehearsed in what Alonso wants after an entire pre-season? But if they can beat Bournemouth 5-1 already, then the end product is exciting.

He has had to contend with a World Cup summer, players getting injured, and a three-week international break. The squad have also gone through many managerial changes, so the adaptation will take time.

Alonso won the Bundesliga title at Leverkusen in his second season with the German club, going a whole league season without loss. His Leverkusen side also reached the Europa League final before losing.

But his first few months at Leverkusen were tricky. Although he won his first game 4-0, Alonso would only see Leverkusen win once in his first seven games – losing 3-0 to Porto and 5-1 to Eintracht Frankfurt.

He would win his next five games, before losing four of the five after that. Ultimately, Leverkusen needed time to adapt to Alonso before it clicked in the second season; he needs time to recreate that at Chelsea.