Chelsea's elimination from the EFL Cup makes it easier to assess Xabi Alonso's debut season but does not simplify management of the team. The board must give the Basque coach time, yet this does not mean the season should lack clear standards and high demands.
The defeat in the penalty shootout at Anfield in late October is no reason for the dismissal of the new head coach. Chelsea fought valiantly, creating a fantastic opportunity to win at the end of normal time and were literally one precise penalty kick away from progressing when Emmanuel Emega approached the spot. However, Liverpool goalkeeper Georgiy Mamardashvili saved the shot, the shootout continued, and the decisive miss was ultimately made by Wesley Fofana.
Nevertheless, this failure has definitively removed the first available trophy from the season, in which the club is not encumbered by European competitions. Now the team's only focuses are the Premier League and the FA Cup. Alonso has fewer tournaments, significantly reduced opportunities to win medals, and no justification for instability in domestic competitions due to heavy flights and a demanding European schedule.
The fair and main goal for Chelsea remains to qualify for the Champions League through the league, while simultaneously building a stronger and more reliable team. Triumph in the FA Cup would be a monumental bonus to such a campaign; however, it cannot serve as a mandatory substitute for achieving goals in the Premier League, which the club's financial resources and status demand. A year without trophies can still be considered a successful first step, provided the team makes the top four. Conversely, another season outside the premier European club tournament with the same chronic defensive failures and total reliance on a couple of leaders will be much harder to justify before fans and management.
The Cup was significant before the exit
After the final whistle, Xabi Alonso labelled the League Cup as the least important tournament for the club this season. This hierarchy is understandable: the final position in the Premier League table determines the fate of the next year, while the FA Cup retains its status as a more prestigious cup competition. However, this does not diminish the significance of the exit to the Reds.
Before the start of the match, the London coach publicly emphasised the importance of cup ties, even calling the battle at Anfield a critical moment of 'do or die'. Alonso made just four changes compared to the painful home defeat to Tottenham, yet retained a highly competitive core. Moisés Caicedo, Maxence Lacroix, Pedro Neto, and Morgan Rogers all started alongside Jordan Henderson, Romeo Lavia, and Danny Welbeck. This was a serious attempt to progress, rather than an evening completely handed over to academy graduates.
Such an approach was entirely justified. The team was only three rounds away from the final at Wembley. Chelsea did not need to conserve the energy of key players ahead of a European week, while many squad members required regular high-level competitive action.
The draw was extremely challenging. Calling the tournament the shortest route to a trophy does not mean that a trip to Liverpool was a walk in the park. It merely indicated fewer stages compared to the FA Cup and significantly lower energy expenditure than the marathon distance of the league. Chelsea had excellent opportunities to keep that door open but missed the chance after a game that was sporadically promising but did not devalue the importance of the lost tournament.
The match at Anfield was a worthy response but did not fix systemic flaws
There is a fundamental difference between the last two defeats suffered by the team in a week. In the derby against the Spurs, Alonso openly acknowledged that Chelsea performed significantly below their level both individually and collectively. They lost at home 0-2, conceded yet another goal from a set piece, and lost Cole Palmer due to a red card. An obvious mistake by the goalkeeper drew the public's attention, but the coach rightly emphasised that the goalkeeper's error does not explain the entire failure.
In Liverpool, the Londoners looked much more capable. A sharp pass from Malo Gusto set up Moisés Caicedo with space, provoking the opponent's foul and earning a penalty which Morgan Rogers calmly converted. The same Rogers posed a threat after the break, and fresh substitute Marco Palestra nearly capped off a brilliant move involving Pedro Neto and Rogers. Meanwhile, goalkeeper Mike Penders made a series of saves, redeeming himself for the poor showing from the previous weekend.
These in-game moments allowed Alonso to lean on positive shifts. The attack was regularly getting into dangerous positions, the goalkeeper regained his form, and the substitutes strengthened the pattern rather than merely fulfilling a role.
Nonetheless, fundamental problems remain. Wesley Fofana's ridiculous handball immediately allowed Liverpool to restore the status quo. Penders had to eliminate dangerous shots from Ronald Araújo and Bradley Barcola, while Levi Colwill and Josh Achimpong made desperate tackles in the closing minutes to block potentially goal-bound shots. Chelsea battled and imposed contact, but they did not control the match from a position of strength.
For a team built in October, this is a normal interim state, provided that the need for constant firefighting subsides in the coming months. The encouraging response will turn into real progress only when the team can reproduce its best segments without risking conceding on every counter-attack.
The main benchmark in the table is more than just a top-five finish
After eight rounds in the national league, Chelsea have accumulated 13 points and currently sit in fifth place, already eight points behind the leader. Four victories, one draw, and three defeats at the start is a record far from a failure but does not confirm the status of a mature giant.
The goal difference fully illustrates this uncertainty: 17 goals scored against 15 conceded. Bright shootouts like the 4-3 against Brighton or the thrashing of 5-1 against Bournemouth demonstrate the overwhelming power of the attacking group. However, the total number of conceded goals explains why winning scenarios can turn into disaster at any moment.
Qualification for the Champions League will be a fundamental achievement for the club, returning the team to its familiar natural habitat. It will also lay a solid sporting foundation for the next stage of squad development.
However, a high result in the table must be accompanied by tangible evidence of reliable play. Will the team make fewer blatant mistakes at their own goal? Can they hold on to a lead calmly without forcing the goalkeeper to perform miracles in the dying moments? Is it possible to progress the ball when the opponent completely shuts down the central areas? These questions clarify how stable the club's league position is.
Moreover, the management should not blindly rely on a fixed fifth place in the hope of an expanded quota for England in European competitions. The task is absolute qualification through strong positions, rather than calculations based on the results of competitors.
Defence from set pieces is a strict test for the coaching staff
Eight goals conceded from set pieces in eight Premier League matches is far too significant a luxury to brush off as mere minor rough patches at the start. No other club in the top tier of English football has conceded more than four at this point. This is an area where the coach’s free hand must be coupled with stringent demands for immediate corrections.
These goals have various causes. Penders’ own goal against the Spurs was a glaring individual error. However, it is the coaching staff that must clearly allocate responsibilities: who protects the goal in front of the goalkeeper, who deals with the first high ball, and who tightly marks incoming opponents and neutralises second balls at the edge of the penalty area.
Regular failures from set pieces undermine any team efforts. Chelsea can dominate possession for long stretches but ultimately find themselves in a chasing position simply because a simple cross from a corner ruins the entire structure. Alonso must resolve this issue through careful personnel selection, strict discipline, and countless rehearsals on the training ground. Hoping that forwards will simply score more is not a defensive plan.
While a positive trajectory can be recognised without inflated demands for perfection, tight battles at first touches, absence of open spaces for opponents, and calmness in the penalty area will significantly reduce panic levels. Fans should not have to listen to yet another excuse at press conferences after every corner conceded. A discount for the first season is logical during the adjustment period, but its persuasiveness diminishes if the same basic errors are repeated for months.
The team must learn to live without João Pedro
The Chelsea treatment room is full of key players. Emiliano Martínez is injured, João Pedro is out for several weeks with a thigh injury, and Maxence Lacroix left the Anfield pitch with a muscle spasm in his hamstring. Caicedo and Gusto also could not finish the match in Liverpool and required urgent substitutions.
Such personnel gaps directly impact playing style. The absence of the starting goalkeeper alters the reliability of pressing escapes, João Pedro’s injury disrupts regular combinations around the nine position, and a fresh duo in central defence must re-coordinate backup.
These are objective difficulties, not empty excuses. Alonso cannot forcibly return a player from the treatment room for a key match, but he can clearly structure the tasks for those called upon to step in.
Emmanuel Emega has returned to the main squad, while Danny Welbeck offers an experienced option as a frontman. Against the Merseysiders, Rogers operated from the flank while Welbeck tied up the opponent's central defenders, freeing Morgan from the need to focus solely on striking. This provided variation from the dynamics seen in the game against Tottenham.
The next step is to ensure that alternative scenarios yield regular results. Chelsea cannot afford to look utterly helpless and lost every time João Pedro is unavailable. A team built for major victories must have backup paths for progressing the ball.
The same applies to the situation with young Penders. His confident actions in Liverpool instilled optimism, yet outfield players must actively assist the goalkeeper, rather than placing the burden of escaping high pressing solely on his composure.
Lack of European competitions will only be a plus with smart work
A lighter midweek schedule will not, by itself, protect all players from injuries: injuries occur in training, and domestic cups take just as much physical toll as international battles. However, free days provide the coaching staff with precious time to methodically correct errors.
In a calm rhythm, the team can work on pressing escapes in the first phase of attack, density of marking upon losing the ball, and positional organisation at set pieces, without the disruptions of endless flights and recovery procedures. New combinations can be meticulously rehearsed before they face their baptism of fire in the Premier League.
This is why the absence of European matches is not just a bonus, but a tremendous coaching responsibility. The club cannot rely on leniency, requesting patience like a participant in the grueling Champions League schedule, if the training days provided do not yield qualitative progress.
The fruits of this painstaking work must be evident in the details: the full-back must know the winger's move in advance, the pivot role must clearly understand who covers when Moisés Caicedo joins the attack, and the striker must instantly find a target for a layoff when facing the goal. These are fundamental elements that enable talented players to consistently demonstrate a high level. If by spring the team’s performance still appears to be pure improvisation, the calendar will cease to serve as an excuse.
A trophy is important, but it will not resolve all systemic issues
A potential triumph in the FA Cup would provide the players with a sense of great victory and would offer the Spanish coach a significant material argument in debates with critics. It would also demonstrate the team’s character in stressful knockout matches. However, such cup success cannot be used as a screen to hide a failing campaign in the regular league.
Winning a trophy alongside qualification for the Champions League would make a superb debut season. A return to the main European club competition, even without cup victories but with a reliably structured style of play, would entirely justify long-term trust in the coach. However, an individual cup on the backdrop of another mid-table finish will raise inevitable questions and will not automatically be seen as a triumph.
Conversely, the club management should not rashly dismiss a coach who has steadily raised the bar in the Premier League just because of one slip in a post-match lottery at Anfield, or a hypothetical failure in the spring draw of the oldest cup. Cup battles carry too large a degree of randomness to make them the sole measure of a coach’s work.
The final assessment must be formed comprehensively: the table position, quality of off-the-ball play, management of injury crises, and effectiveness in utilising the squad's colossal potential. Alonso is not obliged to win a trophy in his first year to prove the viability of his project. However, he must provide the team with a structure where the lack of immediate cups does not become the only outcome of the season.
The management's patience must have a clear direction
The owners and management of Chelsea must fully support Xabi Alonso during this challenging segment. The unfortunate exit to the Merseysiders happened in a hard-fought match, the quality of the game has visibly improved, and the string of injuries requires time for adaptation. No rational factor indicates that yet another managerial change will resolve the systemic issues.
However, genuine support is expressed not through blind faith, but by outlining transparent objectives and honouring their club obligations. The recruitment department must ensure quality alternatives on the market, while the head coach must quickly and effectively integrate them into the overall structure.
The team must learn to defend standards impeccably, minimise vulnerability in midfield turnovers, and regain the form guaranteeing a Champions League spot. A cup trophy would merely strengthen that trajectory, but it is not the be-all and end-all. The Spaniard missed the shortest path to the final, but he certainly did not lose the entire season. Now Chelsea must provide him with the opportunity to prove that the remaining months of work will lead to real progress, rather than the same empty promises of a better future a year from now.
