Barcelona star Alejandro Balde remains outside the plans of head coach Hansi Flick as things stand. This comes with the Spaniard having been knocked well down the left-back pecking order in Catalunya's capital.
Defender Balde was of course heavily linked with a move away from Barcelona during the summer transfer window.
After it was widely reported that the Spaniard had been made available for the right price, Premier League giants Manchester United were hotly tipped as a potential landing spot.
In the end, Balde stayed put, eager to fight for his place in the plans of long-time employers Barca. But as alluded to above, as of this moment, the 22-year-old has not managed to win back the trust of his manager.
As per a report from Diario Sport, following the breakout of youngster Xavi Espart, and permanent signing of João Cancelo:

#Barcelona #plans #back

Xabi Alonso admitted he would love Chelsea to give him a "boring game" after their defensive woes allowed Hull to escape Stamford Bridge with a 2-2 draw on Saturday.
Alonso's side were cruising after Morgan Rogers drilled home in the seventh minute, but once again they paid the price for some sloppy defending.
Hull's Algerian winger Mohamed Belloumi blasted the equaliser after Chelsea failed to clear a long ball.
And Belloumi put the tireless Tigers in front when his deflected shot flashed in before half-time.
Cole Palmer's incisive run and cut-back in the 66th minute allowed Joao Pedro to bag Chelsea's equaliser.

#minute #alonso

Chelsea welcome newly promoted Hull City to the Bridge today, though Hull have not been playing like newcomers, earning seven points from their first three games, keeping three clean sheets along the way. Can they resist our free-scoring attack? Let's hope not!
Xabi Alonso has made a couple changes to the usual early mix, with Maxence Lacroix taking a seat on the bench after starting every single game so far and Malo Gusto deployed at nominal left wing-back, at least according to the published lineup.
Here we go!
Chelsea starting lineup (3-4-2-1)
Martínez | Hato, Colwill, Fofana | Gusto, Lavia, James (c), Neto | Rogers, Palmer | João Pedro
Substitutes from: Penders, Acheampong, Lacroix, Chavarría, Barco, Quenda, Gittens, Estêvão, Welbeck

#Chelsea #lacroix #gusto

Chelsea return to Stamford Bridge on Saturday looking to respond to last weekend's defeat at ****** nal, but Hull City will offer a very different kind of test.
Xabi Alonso's side have scored eight goals in their opening three Premier League games and followed that with a 6-3 League Cup win over Leeds in midweek. Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and João Pedro have already become the main attacking reference points, while Chelsea have scored inside the opening five minutes in all three of their league matches.
Hull, though, have built their impressive start in almost the opposite way.
Sergej Jakirović's newly-promoted side have taken seven points from games against Manchester United, Coventry and Aston Villa without conceding a goal. They remain the only Premier League team yet to be breached this season.
The clean sheets do not mean Hull have dominated games. They had just 26.5% possession against Villa and have regularly been happy to defend in a compact 5-4-1, give the opposition the ball and wait for opportunities to counter. Goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis has already played more passes into the opposition half than any other Hull player, which says plenty about their willingness to go direct.

#games #villa #scored #opening

Xabi Alonso was asked to compare his main striker with the top number 9 in the world right now, and came up with a favourable conclusion.
If you enjoy Talk Chelsea coverage and want to see more of it, add us as a preferred source on Google to make us a favourite and see more of our content.
Joao Pedro just won the Premier League's player of the month for August, after a run of 3 games where he racked up two goals and two ******* ists.
That made it the perfect time to ask manager Xabi Alonso about him and where he sees the striker's ceiling. The big question was asked in yesterday's presser – is JP as good as Erling Haaland?
"I would say yes," replied Alonso when asked if the Brazilian could be put alongside the Norwegian in the very top category of striker.

#talk #joao #premier

I have happy memories of this fixture because one of my three goals for Chelsea came against Hull City in the FA Cup.
Hull haven't conceded yet and they are the team I have been most wrong about so far this season.
With every passing week, they are putting more egg on my face but it can't keep happening, can it?
It probably can, but I am still going for Chelsea to win this. The Tigers have defended brilliantly so far, but they are not going to keep out Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Joao Pedro.
Hull will defend ferociously but, as Chelsea showed in the Carabao Cup against Leeds on Wednesday, they have enough quality to play through teams who sit in; and, if they score first, then Hull will have to open up - that's my theory anyway.

#hull

Joao Cancelo has made no secret of his biggest ambition at Barcelona, with the Portuguese defender dreaming of lifting the UEFA Champions League trophy with the Blaugrana.
Cancelo made his first start of the season against Feyenoord on Wednesday, completing the full 90 minutes as Barcelona opened their European campaign with an important victory and a strong performance.
The summer signing was delighted to finally play a major role and believes Barça have made the right start in their pursuit of European success.
Yet, he knows the Champions League campaign is only beginning.
Speaking to Barcelona's official media (h/t MARCA), Cancelo highlighted the importance of playing at home in Europe while making his personal target clear.

#start #joao #portuguese

The U-20 team secured qualification for the 2nd round of the Copa do Brasil on Thursday afternoon (10) by defeating Cuiabá 4-3 in a penalty shootout in a single-leg match held at CT Rei Pelé! In regular time, the game ended 1-1, with a goal by Contreras!
Rodrigo Cézar, Diego Matos, Guilherme Cruz, and Pepê Fermino converted Santos' penalties, while goalkeeper João Pedro came up with a huge save!
Santos opened the scoring just 4 minutes in after a corner kick taken by Vinícius Fabri. Contreras' first header was saved by the goalkeeper, but he got on the rebound and headed it home to put his team in front.
Still in the first half, the Santos side had more chances to extend the lead, but failed to turn them into goals. In the second half, despite Santos still controlling the match, Cuiabá managed to equalize right at the end, taking the fight for qualification to penalties.
In the next round, Santos FC will face Palmeiras in October, with the date still to be confirmed.

#santos #cuiab #contreras #goalkeeper

The Fantasy Premier League season is entering week four and plenty of managers will be getting itching fingers, with so many chips at our disposal.
Is it time to play a Free Hit or a Wildcard?
BBC Sport FPL expert Holly Shand looks at some of the biggest dilemmas facing FPL managers heading into gameweek four.
Chelsea striker Joao Pedro (£7.7m) is the most-owned player in the game, in 72.5% of sides. Given that Chelsea have scored eight goals already this season, and face promoted Hull City at home next, it feels like the right time to be moving towards a double up on their ****** ets.
Cole Palmer (£9.6m) and Morgan Rogers (£7.6m) came on as half-time substitutes in the Carabao Cup against Leeds United on Wednesday, with Palmer scoring a double including a penalty, and Rogers chalking up three ****** ists.

#Chelsea #managers

Barcelona look to continue their perfect start to the season and kick off a new European journey with a win as they welcome Dutch giants Feyenoord to Camp Nou for their Champions League league phase debut.
Here's how we think Hansi Flick will line up his troops for Wednesday's battle:
Barça cruised to a comfortable win against Valencia with Hansi Flick able to rest a few starters while the team didn't have to spend too much energy in the second half, so we are expecting a strong team once again for the European opener.
Eric Garcia broke his nose on Sunday and is suspended for this one due to his red card in Barça's elimination game against Atlético Madrid last season, so Jules Kounde is guaranteed to start at right-back. Pau Cubarsí will start at center-back and we think Andreas Christensen, who has been healthy and performed well to start the season, will be picked as his partner ahead of Gerard Martín.
Xavi Espart has played every second of football so far and João Cancelo didn't feature at all against Valencia, so we think the Portuguese will make his first start of the season at left-back to give Espart a chance to rest.

#think

One of the biggest priorities for Bayern Munich this summer was finding a solution for João Palhinha, and Michael Reschke believes the club finally managed to put a difficult chapter behind them.
"Most importantly, of course, they've resolved the Palhinha situation. That whole affair cost a fortune and certainly annoyed everyone, but these things happen. It's impossible for every transfer to be a success," Reschke told Abendzeitung.
Bayern Munich paid Fulham €51 million up front for Palhinha in 2024, with the deal potentially rising to €56 million with add-ons. After struggling to establish himself as a regular starter, he spent last season on loan at Tottenham before Bayern Munich ultimately moved him on.
The financial investment made Palhinha one of the more disappointing transfers of recent years, particularly given the limited return Bayern Munich received on the pitch.
But Reschke's point is that even clubs as successful as Bayern Munich will occasionally get a transfer wrong.

#transfer #million

Arsenal needed to come from behind to win a breathless game 2-1 against Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium as Kai Havertz scored for the third time in the Premier League against his former club.
Havertz netted midway through the first half to equalise after Morgan Rogers, who the champions missed out on signing during the transfer window, had stunned home fans with a volleyed goal after 77 seconds.
The Germany international was instrumental too in Martin Odegaard's 50th-minute winner, executing a delightful dummy to leave Chelsea's defence flatfooted and create room for the captain to rifle home.
Arsenal's Martin Odegaard scores his side's second goal during the English Premier League soccer match between ****** nal and Chelsea at Emirates Stadium. (is ****** ociated with: «Arsenal claim derby honours v Chelsea, Everton level late v Man Utd») John Walton/PA Wire/dpa
Chelsea had lost four league games in a row at the Emirates, conceding 11 goals, but here they gave ****** nal a far sterner examination than at any time during that sequence, with the front three of Cole Palmer, Joao Pedro and Rogers again showing their potential as ****** ets in a possible ****** le challenge.

#Chelsea

Chelsea's interest in Lamine Camara has not gone away, and his latest display for Monaco has only intensified the feeling that this is a story with plenty left to run. According to TeamTalk, scouts from Chelsea and Liverpool were among a number of Premier League clubs in Paris on Friday night as Monaco claimed an eye-catching win over Paris Saint-Germain, with Camara playing a central part.
The backdrop made the performance even more significant. Camara had only just seen what was described as his "dream Deadline Day move to Chelsea collapse", after Monaco withdrew late despite an agreement having been reached. It left both player and buying club stunned, and it also left Chelsea needing to reassess after Enzo Fernandez's move to Manchester City earlier that same day created a major midfield vacancy.
Photo: IMAGO
There are moments when recruitment departments want to see a player's technical quality, and others when they want evidence of temperament. This appearance appeared to provide both. Camara returned to action under considerable emotional pressure and still delivered what was described as "a performance of real quality against one of Europe's strongest sides".
Against a PSG midfield featuring Fabian Ruiz, Joao Neves and Vitinha, "arguably one of the finest midfield trios in club football", Camara "was able to more than hold his own and play a significant role in Monaco's victory". That detail matters. Clubs at the top end of the Premier League are not only buying talent, they are buying resilience, personality and the ability to cope with elite opposition.

#buying #midfield #league

It may still be just the start of the new season, but some clear lineup preferences have already emerged — presumably not just for the WAGNH Community but for Xabi Alonso as well. Namely, we know that our best front-three at the moment are Cole Palmer, João Pedro, and Morgan Rogers. And we know that we have to have Maxence Lacroix alongside Levi Colwill in defense. And we know that we want Reece James on the pitch in some way, shape, or form.
So the major decisions in the lineup choices currently revolve around midfield, wing-backs, and the third defender.
For the latter, the WAGNH Community prefer Josh Acheampong over Wesley Fofana by a 49-39 margin.
For the wing-backs, the voters want Jorrel Hato and Pedro Neto, with Pep Chavarría garnering only 27% and Marco Palestra still out injured. Malo Gusto checks in at 43 per cent, not nearly enough at this position, or midfield.
For the midfield, perhaps most crucially, the vote favors Roméo Lavia alongside James. Moisés Caicedo's unknown injury status is reflected in his measly 24 per cent vote share. Still ahead of Valentín Barco, at just 20.

#still #midfield #pedro #alongside

Michael Reschke believes Max Eberl's decision to publicly make João Palhinha, Bryan Zaragoza and Sacha Boey available for transfer did not hurt Bayern Munich's chances of getting a good deal for the three players.
Eberl was remarkably open about the trio throughout the summer, making it clear that Bayern Munich no longer planned with them and that the club was willing to let them leave.
Reschke, however, does not believe that public approach necessarily reduced their market value.
"Well, they certainly didn't become more expensive as a result. However, I ******* ume that these statements by Max were coordinated internally," Reschke told Abendzeitung.
There is an important distinction in that ******* sment. Eberl was not publicly criticizing the players or suggesting that Bayern Munich desperately needed to get rid of them. Instead, he was communicating the club's sporting plans and making it clear that there were opportunities for interested teams.

#publicly #clear

Not to be outdone by young American Iva Jovic's marathon win on Saturday, 20-year-old Learner Tien produced his own tennis magic with a five set win over Jakub Mensik at the 2026 US Open.
Tien is coached by another former young tennis superstar, 1989 French Open winner Michael Chang. He etches himself in tennis history by being the youngest American man to make it to the US Open fourth round since Andy Roddick in 2002, a year before Roddick won his US Open ******* le.
MORE: Iva Jovic made a relatable admission after defeating Alexandra Eala in US Open thriller
He is not always the first of the 21-and-under generation that comes to mind among his peers: Arthur Fils, Joao Fonseca, and Mensik.
However, his game continues to improve, and Tien is becoming elite and beloved among his peers and fans.

#open #tennis #american #year

The next Barcelona match is upon us! The Blaugrana travel to Mestalla for a La Liga game against Valencia, and Hansi Flick has called up the following 24 players for Sunday's clash:
Goalkeepers: 1. Joan Garcia, 13. Wojciech Szczesny, 25. Dominik Livakovic
Defenders: 2. João Cancelo, 3. Alejandro Balde, 5. Pau Cubarsí, 12. Xavi Espart, 15. Andreas Christensen, 18. Gerard Martín, 23. Jules Kounde, 24. Eric Garcia
Midfielders: 4. Brian Fariñas, 6. Gavi, 7. Fermín López, 8. Pedri, 16. Rodri, 20. Dani Olmo, 22. Marc Bernal
Forwards: 9. Gabriel Jesus, 10. Lamine Yamal, 11. Raphinha, 14. Karim Adeyemi, 17. Anthony Gordon, 29. Hamza Abdelkarim

#garcia #mestalla #valencia

Aston Villa host **** nal at Villa Park on Monday looking to respond after a 4-0 opening-weekend defeat at Brighton, a result that left Unai Emery's side without a point or a shot on target.
The visit of the champions arrives amid significant summer turnover at Villa Park, with several new signings in line to feature for the first time.
Leon Bailey, Amadou Onana (knee), Johan Manzambi (knee) and Brian Madjo (ankle/foot) are all unavailable, and Joao Gomes is suspended. Tammy Abraham is a doubt with a groin/hip issue. Ollie Watkins departed the club this summer, adding to the selection questions facing Emery in attack.
Zion Suzuki, a £30 million signing from Parma, is expected to make his Villa debut in goal after Marco Bizot started the defeat at Brighton. Leon Goretzka, who joined the club on Thursday, is set to come straight into midfield in place of the suspended Gomes, partnering Boubacar Kamara. Nicolas Jackson is also in line for his first involvement, leading the line in Watkins' absence, with John McGinn, Emiliano Buendía and George Hemmings providing support behind him.
Aston Villa possible starting XI (4-2-3-1): Suzuki; Cash, Lindelöf, Torres, Maatsen; Kamara, Goretzka; McGinn, Buendía, Hemmings; Jackson

#villa #line #park #leon

Aston Villa could hardly have imagined a worse start to the 2026/27 Premier League season.
The Lions were torn apart by Brighton & Hove Albion at the Amex Stadium, with Fabian Hurzeler's side needing just 31 minutes to put the game beyond doubt.
A Victor Lindelof own goal and a debut red card for Joao Gomes summed up a disastrous afternoon for Villa, who were forced into the relegation zone after losing 4-0 on opening day.
It's too early to say whether the heavy defeat points to deeper problems following the departures of several high-profile players including Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, Ezri Konsa, and Lucas Digne.
However, the Villans have sprung into action in the transfer market.

#villa #lions #brighton #stadium

Alonso sprang a surprise by naming Martinez in the starting line-up - less than four hours after his £7.5m move was confirmed by the club.
It is a lifeline for Martinez, who turns 34 next week and fell out of favour at Aston Villa following a failed move to Juventus and the arrival of **** an's Zion Suzuki as Unai Emery's first-choice keeper.
The World Cup winner's every catch was cheered on by the Stamford Bridge faithful during an **** ured display in goal, though he was unlucky to concede two of Brighton's three goals, his save landing on the feet of Yalcouye for the opener and then getting undone by Joao Pedro's own goal.
His best moment came just before Brighton's second when he made a sharp diving save from Diego Gomez and he also denied Olivier Boscagli and Brighton a third, which would have levelled the score.
Chelsea have spent heavily across the pitch under their new ownership, but for many, a reliable goalkeeper was the missing piece.

#move #villa

Cole Palmer scored what turned out to be the decisive goal in a thrilling 4-3 victory for Chelsea over Brighton at Stamford Bridge.
Romeo Lavia, Pedro Neto and Joao Pedro put the Blues 3-0 up, but Brighton reduced the deficit to a single goal through Malick Yalcouye and a Joao Pedro own goal before Palmer made it four. Pascal Gross then headed in a 96th-minute consolation goal after a dangerous long throw-in was not dealt with.
Here's how I rated the players, and how you rated them.
Chelsea beat Brighton in seven-goal thriller to maintain perfect start
What do BBC Sport's player ratings mean?

#goal #brighton #bridge

João Palhinha recently completed a transfer back home to Benfica, putting an end to his short and largely uneventful stint at Bayern Munich. Max Eberl did a kind of recap on Palhinha's experience with the German giants (via Sky Sports' Kerry Hau as captured by X account iMiaSanMia):
"João was very unlucky not to have joined the club a year before. There was another attempt in winter. Then the following summer, there were changes: I joined the club, there was a coaching change – we still signed this player [Palhinha], who had showed outstanding qualities in the Premier League. We signed Vinnie Kompany as new coach. Then the developments showed that maybe Palhinha's playing style does not perfectly fit into the development we were going through.
"João Palhinha is still a top player with a great character, who has clear strengths. But not the way that perfectly fits our midfield. Of course, when a player costs a lot of money and doesn't work out, people quickly talk about a flop – but there was a factual reason for that. Now we're just happy for all parties that we found a solution. He went back to his home country, we got a fee, with which we can balance the books a bit."
All the best to JP on his move back to Portugal and hopefully he can get his career back on track even if it's at the late stage.
Sign up for a user account and get:

#back #account #signed

Fiorentina and Frosinone face each other this Saturday at the Stadio Artemio Franchi for matchweek two of the Serie A.
Fiorentina have won 0 points to date and are placed in 20th position. In their last encounter, Fabio Grosso's team were beaten 4-0 by Roma (Serie A 2026/27).
Frosinone have 0 points to their name this season and occupy 16th position in the table. In their last encounter, Massimiliano Alvini's team were beaten 0-1 by Juventus (Serie A 2026/27).
The last meeting between the two teams ended with Fiorentina winning 5-1.
Fiorentina ( vs Roma 2026-08-24): David de Gea, Dodô, Radu Dragusin, Luca Ranieri, João Mário, Cher Ndour, Marco Brescianini, Nicolò **** ioli, Arthur Atta, Franco Mastantuono, Mateo Pellegrino

#roma #position #team

Barcelona will play their first home LaLiga fixture of the season at the Camp Nou on Thursday, hosting Athletic Club in a midweek encounter.
The hosts arrive in excellent form after an emphatic 5-0 victory over Elche that launched their campaign. Under Hansi Flick, Barcelona have displayed sharp tactics and a potent attacking threat. They have claimed three wins in their past five league outings, with their forward play clicking — averaging just over two goals per game during that period.
FC Barcelona look set to hand a long-awaited club debut to high-profile summer signing Rodri, who has completed successive training sessions following a minor back operation and is expected to be named among the substitutes.
Flick appears ready to tweak his back line at the Spotify Camp Nou, with Pau Cubarsí, Jules Koundé and João Cancelo likely to return to the starting XI after being rested last time out.
The Catalans do, however, face a midfield concern as Gavi is doubtful after suffering a heavy knee contusion against Elche; scans excluded a serious ligament injury, but he missed the squad's final training session.

#flick #training #thursday

Per a press release from Benfica, the Portuguese power confirmed previous reports of what it was going to pay for João Palhinha.
The total package consisted of €14 million of a base transfer fee, plus €5 million in potential bonuses for Bayern Munich as had been reported earlier this week:
Midfielder João Palhinha, 31, has joined the Sport Lisboa e Benfica professional soccer team. The Portuguese international is transferring from Bayern Munich to the Glorioso, signing a contract valid through June 30, 2030. The agreement to acquire the player's full rights was finalized for 14 million euros, to which may be added up to a maximum of five million euros, payable based on predefined objectives. The contract includes a buyout clause in the amount of 50 million euros.
Palhinha's move was a long time coming and solved one of the existing roster overflow issues for the Bavarians as the midfielder was not in the plans for head coach Vincent Kompany. There was never a strategy for how to use Palhinha upon his arrival in Bavaria. Now, the 31-year-old will get a chance to revive his career in a comfortable setting.
Sign up for a user account and get:

#palhinha #contract #sport

As expected, João Palhinha's time at Bayern Munich has officially come to an end, with the 31-year-old midfielder completing his transfer to Benfica per a release on FCBayern.com.
The move brings Palhinha back to Portugal and to his home city of Lisbon, where he began his professional career with Sporting CP. After spending the past several years playing abroad, the Portugal international will now continue his career in his home country.
Bayern Munich board member for sport Max Eberl explained that the club and Palhinha worked together to find a solution that suited everyone involved.
"We've discussed João Palhinha's situation openly with him and found a solution that we could all agree on. He's decided to continue his career in his home country. We thank him for his time at FC Bayern and wish him all the best for the future," said Eberl.
Palhinha joined Bayern Munich from Fulham in the summer of 2024 after establishing himself as one of the Premier League's standout defensive midfielders. However, Palhinha struggled to establish himself as a consistent starter and spent the 2025/26 season on loan at Tottenham Hotspur. Now, his Bayern Munich chapter is officially closed.

#munich #Career #continue

Joao Pedro took just 31 seconds to make a statement about how he is handling the so-called curse of the number nine shirt at Chelsea.
The Brazilian deftly lifted his shot over Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno to set his side on their way to a dramatic 3-2 win at Craven Cottage in manager Xabi Alonso's first game in charge on Monday.
It was a memorable weekend for Joao Pedro personally, having been handed the coveted number nine shirt and improved financial terms on a new contract that will run until 2034.
It might seem trite, but there is a sizeable group of Chelsea supporters who believe in the so-called curse.
Not since Dutch striker Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink left the club in 2004 have the club had a prolific striker in the number nine shirt.

#shirt #Chelsea #curse

Sport moved into the Série B top six with a 3-0 win over América-MGCredits: Paulo Paiva/Sport Club do Recife
Sport moved into the Brasileirão Série B top six with a 3-0 win over América-MG on Monday (24) at Ilha do Retiro in Recife. The team reached 38 points, climbed to sixth place, and moved ahead of CRB and Operário-PR. Novorizontino-SP, meanwhile, thrashed Athletic-MG 4-1 at Arena Sicredi in São João del-Rei (MG) and remained in fourth place.
This Tuesday (25), two matches will wrap up the 24th round. Both games will kick off at 7:30 p.m. Brasília time: Atlético-GO vs. Botafogo-SP at Antônio Accioly in Goiânia, and Juventude vs. CRB at Alfredo Jaconi in Caxias do Sul.
See the round's results so far: Ceará 2-1 Londrina-PR, Cuiabá 1-1 Goiás, Ponte Preta 0-2 Avaí, São Bernardo-SP 1-1 Náutico, Operário-PR 0-0 Vila Nova, and Criciúma 0-2 Fortaleza.
Novorizontino-SP thrashed Athletic-MG 4-1 in the 24th round of Série BCredits: Ozzair jr / Novorizontino

#moved #recife #place #round

Barcelona have been on a striker hunt since the start of the summer transfer window, with the club focusing on getting Julian Alvarez from Atletico Madrid.
However, Los Colchoneros have refused to negotiate with the Catalan club and have insisted that the 26-year-old is not for sale, especially to Barça.
Meanwhile, Barça have gone through various striker options like Joao Pedro, Eli Junior Kroupi, Luis Suarez, Lautaro Martinez and Viktor Gyokeres, among other names.
Now, according to Cadena SER, Barça have made a firm decision over their striker search: if Julian Alvarez cannot be signed, the club will not bring in another centre-forward this summer.
The Catalans have reviewed the market and concluded that none of the available alternatives justify moving away from their priority target.

#club #alvarez

Xabi Alonso came to Craven Cottage hoping for another Premier League first. Twenty-two years earlier, he bagged his first English top-flight goal for Liverpool. Against a former Reds team-mate striving for the same goal in Alvaro Arbeloa, he made another happy memory on his managerial bow.
Most pictured his return to England to come with Liverpool; Chelsea fans already seem grateful he's landed in London. While far from the perfect performance, victory in a five-goal thriller against Fulham brought a lot of encouragement.
A mixture of big spending and summer snubs seems to have forged one of the most dangerous attacking front threes in the league. Morgan Rogers showed signs he was worthy of his £117m price tag. Cole Palmer, with a point to prove after his World Cup omission, suddenly looked like a real problem again after what was, by his standards, a dud of a season. His link-up with Joao Pedro took effect within 31 seconds.
Chelsea's front three stole the show against Fulham (Reuters)
"They are going to be a very important part of the team," recognised Alonso, who now wants the trio's team-mates to reach the level they exhibited on Monday night. "To build [the team] around them, no. To build the team with them. They need to take responsibility, they need to lead the rest, they need to inspire the rest, because if they do great, the other ones will follow.

#goal #need