{"id":10096,"date":"2026-05-18T13:05:11","date_gmt":"2026-05-18T13:05:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=10096"},"modified":"2026-05-18T13:05:11","modified_gmt":"2026-05-18T13:05:11","slug":"smart-transfer-targets-that-could-shape-the-team-in-alonso-image","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=10096","title":{"rendered":"Smart transfer targets that could shape the team in Alonso’ image"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Xabi Alonso has been named as the new manager of Chelsea, with the Spaniard set to assume office in July.<\/b><\/div>\n
Alonso will walk into a Chelsea camp that has struggled this season, with the West Londoners ninth in the Premier League and set to miss out on Champions League qualification.<\/div>\n

Chelsea’s youth-centric recruitment policy has led to a muddled squad, one without the required leadership or experience to challenge at the top end.<\/p>\n

The 44-year-old has favoured a 3-4-2-1 system during his coaching career to date, and the expectation is that the shape will be implemented at Stamford Bridge.<\/p>\n

A big summer awaits Alonso and the club’s recruitment team, who need players who can hit the ground running.<\/p>\n

Six realistic potential transfer targets that could shape Chelsea in Alonso’s image.<\/h5>\n
Mike Maignan – AC Milan<\/h5>\n

Chelsea pulled out of a deal to sign Mike Maignan from AC Milan last summer, a decision most would deem a mistake. Neither Robert Sanchez nor Filip Jorgensen have convinced at Chelsea and Maignan would offer an instant upgrade.<\/p>\n

Just four players across Europe boast a better save percentage than the Milan captain, who would be the top-tier operator Chelsea have long lacked in goal.<\/p>\n

Alejandro Grimaldo – Bayer Leverkusen<\/h5>\n

Arguably, the key to Alonso’s game plan is the wing-backs, and Alejandro Grimaldo ensured the vision became a success in Leverkusen.<\/p>\n

The Spaniard has produced frightening output from left wing-back with 10 goals and 13 assists in the league alone during Leverkusen’s title-winning campaign.<\/p>\n

He’s managed eight goals and eight assists in the Bundesliga this season, despite Leverkusen’s inconsistent campaign.<\/div>\n

With Marc Cucurella present, a left-sided defender is not a priority, but it would be hard to turn down a reunion with Grimaldo if the opportunity arises. The 30-year-old is open to an exit and reportedly available for around \u20ac30m.<\/p>\n

Jon Martin – Real Sociedad<\/h5>\n

Could Alonso return to his first club for a Sociedad starlet? Jon Martin has piqued the interest of La Liga’s leading clubs after an impressive emergence in San Sebasti\u00e1n.<\/p>\n

The centre-back was named in the UEFA U-19 European Championship Team of the Tournament last summer, before a breakthrough at Sociedad that has included 30 senior appearances and Copa del Rey success.<\/p>\n

The 20-year-old ranks in the top 12% of centre-backs across Europe for percentage of defensive duels and aerial duels won, and in the top 20% for forward passes completed.<\/p>\n

John Stones – Manchester City<\/h5>\n

Central defence has been an Achilles heel for Chelsea, with a lack of experience exposed. Though there will be reservations over his recent fitness record, Stones could solve plenty of problems.<\/p>\n

Excellent with the ball at his feet, vastly experienced, and a serial winner, Chelsea could do a lot worse than offer the free agent a deal. Stones will leave the Cityzens when his contract expires in the summer.<\/div>\n
Aurelien Tchouameni – Real Madrid<\/h5>\n

Aurelien Tchouameni could be ousted at Real Madrid this summer, having been at the centre of recent conflict. The Frenchman’s fight with vice-captain Federico Valverde formed part of the recent chaos at the Bernabeu, and could see offers considered in the summer.<\/p>\n

The lack of Champions League football would cost against Chelsea in the race for the midfielder, but he’d offer an ideal complement to Moises Caicedo in a midfield pivot. With Enzo Fernandez angling for a move and Romeo Lavia’s fitness unreliable, it’s a deal that makes sense.<\/p>\n

Morgan Gibbs-White – Nottingham Forest<\/h5>\n

Alonso’s system depends on creativity from dual number tens, with Cole Palmer sure to fill one of those roles.<\/p>\n

Chelsea have a collection of wide players who have underwhelmed in West London, and another playmaker is likely to be in their sights. Chelsea could do far worse than pursue Morgan Gibbs-White, who appears ready for the next step after almost singlehandedly saving Nottingham Forest from relegation.<\/div>\n

Gibbs-White has scored 13 goals and laid on four assists in the Premier League, with no midfielder outscoring the 26-year-old. After coming close to a move to London with Spurs last summer, Chelsea could consider a Premier League-ready signing that would improve their creative cast.<\/p>\n

The Blues have a long-standing interest in Morgan Rogers, but Aston Villa’s qualification for the Champions League makes that deal unlikely.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Xabi Alonso has been named as the new manager of Chelsea, with the Spaniard set…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10097,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10096","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chelsea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10096","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10096"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10096\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10097"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10096"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10096"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10096"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}