Chelsea and the rest of the Premier League had to watch on as Arsenal celebrated winning the title on Tuesday night. Bournemouth held Manchester City to a draw, and so, without kicking a ball themselves, Mikel Arteta’s current crop of Arsenal players ended the Gunners’ long, long wait for title success.
It had been 22 years since the club last lifted the Premier League trophy, a wait that was almost unimaginable after the Invincibles season of 2003/04. Chelsea were last champions of England in 2016/17, so their wait is not as long. Although 10 years, as it will be next term, is too long for a club such as Chelsea that has grown so accustomed to lifting trophies.
No Titles But Plenty of Success
It has not, of course, been a lost decade. Since the Blues last won the top-tier title, they have won the FA Cup, the Europa League, the Champions League, the FIFA Club World Cup and the Europa Conference League. Some Chelsea supporters would do well to remember the dark days that existed for much of the 20th century. Completing a full set of the extant UEFA trophies and being crowned champions of the world would be an astonishing achievement for any club.
FIFA CLUB WORLD CUP WINNERS!!! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/KnbFOjfqzg
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 13, 2025
However, while silverware is what really counts, fans also want to see their side consistently challenging at the top of the table. And that is where Chelsea have really struggled in the years since they last won the title. Starting with 2017/18, when they sought to defend their crown as kings of England, Chelsea have finished fifth, third, fourth, fourth, third, 12th, sixth and fourth.
They can finish no higher than seventh this term and could easily finish in the bottom half. Results have not been good enough, and in 2025/26, Enzo Maresca and his replacement as permanent Blues boss, Liam Rosenior, have both paid the price.
Youth coach Calum McFarlane has had two short-term spells in the dugout for the west Londoners, both before Rosenior was appointed, and after he was dismissed. But now the club have made what looks like an excellent choice, installing Xabi Alonso as manager. The Basque was confirmed as the new manager on the 17th of May, but will officially take control on the 1st of July.
Huge Appointment for the Blues
With all due respect to the likes of Rosenior, Maresca and previous appointments such as Mauricio Pochettino, Frank Lampard and Graham Potter, it feels like Alonso is a big step up. All of those bosses had much to commend them and had enjoyed varying degrees of success. But none arrived with a CV as impressive as former Liverpool and Real Madrid midfielder Alonso.
That the club have been able to get this deal over the line is a big coup, with Liverpool and other big European teams expressing interest. Todd Boehly and co can be criticised for many (many, many) things, but they moved swiftly here and went out and got arguably the best young manager that was available.
Many Liverpool fans, dismayed with results, performances and the style of football under Arne Slot, were optimistic that their club would appoint the Spaniard in the near future. Chelsea beat them to him, though, and it will be especially painful for Reds fans to see one of their former heroes turn round a rival with whom, to say the least, there is no love lost.
Alonso’s Record
Since Boehly took over, by and large, the Blues have gone for youth both on the pitch and in the dugout. Poch was 51 when he was made head coach of Chelsea but all the other managerial appointments (including short-term ones) since then have been in their 40s – or even younger.
The incoming boss will not turn 45 until November, so he fits the mould. However, he has already delivered serious silverware in his time as a coach. As a player, he won just about every prize going during a glittering career that included spells with Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich (not to mention three major tournaments and 114 caps with Spain).
His coaching career is in its early days, but already he has managed to guide Bayer Leverkusen to an against-the-odds league and cup double in Germany. His Leverkusen side of 2023/24 were simply sensational, and it was a real achievement to deny the Bayern Munich juggernaut. Not only did he guide the underdogs to the Bundesliga title, but he also oversaw an unbeaten league campaign.
They romped to the title too, by a massive 17 points, winning 28 of their 34 games and drawing the other six. They were (obviously) unbeaten in the domestic cup, beating Kaiserslautern 1-0 in the final and went agonisingly close to an astonishing invincible season.
In their penultimate game of a long campaign, they lost in the Europa League final to an inspired Atalanta side. Even so, they set a new European record for consecutive games without defeat, going 51 games unbeaten, losing just one of 53 by the time the campaign was done.
This feat marked Alonso as the hottest young manager in European football. He resisted the temptation to leave for bigger things and stayed another season, before leaving Leverkusen in May 2025 with a winning rate of nearly 63% over the 140 games for which he was in charge.
Despite winning almost 71% of his games with his new club Real Madrid, the trigger-happy club hierarchy decided to dispense with his services in January 2026. His reputation was largely unaffected by this – Madrid have sacked so many of the game’s best managers that it almost serves as a badge of honour.
What Should Chelsea Fans Expect?
One of the reasons why Alonso seems such a good fit for Chelsea is the way he improved players in Germany. Up against the might of Bayern, he had no choice but to work with what he had and use his own coaching skills to bridge the gap to the perennial German champions. Blues fans will be very excited to see what he can do with their squad, which is packed with young, talented players who have not yet realised their full potential.
Tactically, he is flexible, and he has the intelligence to shape a team based on the players he has available and the strengths of the opponent. Alonso has worked under some of the greatest managers of all time, including Vicente del Bosque with Spain, plus the likes of Carlo Ancelotti, Pep Guardiola, Jose Mourinho and Rafa Benitez.
He has learnt much from each of them, and while his teams dominate possession, a la Pep, they attack more quickly, making his style of football more modern. His sides are flexible within games, moving from four to five at the back as required. He is a superb man-manager too, and all told, Chelsea supporters have a lot to be excited about.