Xabi Alonso has admitted that Chelsea have a lot of work to do after their disappointing 3-0 defeat to Brentford in the Premier League.
Chelsea went into the London derby hoping to return to winning ways, but the Blues suffered another setback as Brentford produced a strong second-half performance to secure all three points.
The result means Chelsea have now gone three league matches without a win after starting Alonso’s reign with victories over Fulham and Brighton. The latest defeat also continued a worrying defensive trend, with Chelsea conceding at least twice in each of their first five league matches under the Spanish manager.
Speaking after the game, Alonso did not try to hide from the problems facing his team. The former Real Madrid manager admitted that Chelsea were unable to maintain their level throughout the match and were punished for it.
“It’s about everything. It’s about the mentality, the football and the tactical things that we need to keep improving. We can do much better,” Alonso said.
The Chelsea boss had already expressed his frustration with his team’s inability to perform at the same level for the full 90 minutes.
According to Alonso, playing well for only part of a match is simply not enough at Premier League level. Chelsea were relatively comfortable during the first half at Brentford, but their performance dropped after the break and Brentford took full advantage.
The opening goal came from a set-piece situation before Chelsea struggled to respond. As they pushed forward looking for an equaliser, Brentford found more spaces and eventually added two more goals to complete a convincing victory.
For Alonso, the problem goes beyond one individual mistake or one area of the pitch.
He pointed towards mentality, footballing performance and tactical organisation as areas that need attention. His comments suggest that he believes Chelsea’s recent problems require a collective response rather than simply blaming one player or one department.
The Spaniard also refused to use João Pedro’s absence as an excuse for Chelsea’s poor attacking display. Chelsea managed only two shots on target during the match and struggled to create enough clear opportunities. Alonso instead insisted that the players and coaching staff must examine what went wrong and continue working.
“We need to look at each other and know that we have to work and improve because there is still a long way to go,” Alonso explained.
That will be the main challenge for Chelsea during the upcoming international break.
Alonso arrived at Stamford Bridge with expectations of building a team capable of competing at the highest level, but the early weeks of the campaign have shown that there is still plenty to fix. Chelsea have shown attacking quality at times, but their defensive problems and lack of consistency have made it difficult for them to put together complete performances.
The Brentford defeat has therefore given Alonso another opportunity to identify the weaknesses in his squad and work on correcting them.
Rather than pointing fingers, the Chelsea manager has made it clear that improvement has to come from the entire team.
With time still on his side, Alonso will now be hoping his players respond when Premier League action resumes. Chelsea’s next league match is against Bournemouth on October 10, giving the manager several weeks to work on the tactical, mental and defensive issues that have emerged during the opening stages of his tenure.
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