No trophy in turbulent season but Alonso arrival offers Chelsea hope

Only a few hundred dispirited Chelsea fans were still inside Wembley as Cole Palmer and Co trudged up the steps to collect their losers' medals following their FA Cup final defeat by Manchester City.

The news of Xabi Alonso's impending arrival as the club's new manager, which filtered out within the aftermath of Saturday's 1-0 loss, would have lifted their mood.

The appointment of the former Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen boss, 44, is expected in the coming days and he will be unveiled in pre-season, with his contract beginning on 1 July.

Win or lose at Wembley, Chelsea had already been close to making a decision on Liam Rosenior's replacement - and keen to avoid creating a distraction for players and staff involved in the showpiece occasion.

There was, therefore, nothing to delay the announcement once the match was over, allowing attention to turn to the future.

Although Alonso, who enjoyed a distinguished playing career and led Bayer Leverkusen to league and cup success in Germany, is an exciting appointment for supporters, there is also an acceptance he faces a difficult task.

Chelsea are heading into a turbulent summer as the FA Cup final loss denied them another route into European competition.

Champions League qualification is already out of reach, while a place in the Europa League looks unlikely with the club currently ninth in the Premier League with two games left and probably needing at least a seventh-placed finish.

Conference League football would do little to improve finances or excite fans used to facing Europe's elite.

There is a realistic chance Chelsea will miss out on Uefa competition altogether. However, sources at the club strongly reject suggestions they would prefer to avoid qualifying for lesser competitions, or be content without European football, despite their settlement with financial regulators following significant spending on transfers.

It leaves Alonso inheriting a team low on confidence, operating under financial constraints and facing wider personnel challenges.

What do Blues see in Alonso?

Chelsea are keen to learn lessons from this season and have been impressed by Alonso's knowledge, leadership, emotional intelligence and values.

They also value his trophy pedigree and ability to work collaboratively within an established structure.

It's a very different group of players and structure to the one at Real Madrid, where Alonso's seven-month tenure ended in January after a falling out with several key players including Kylian Mbappe.

There are not the same Galactico names at Stamford Bridge, but key players like Marc Cucurella and Enzo Fernandez criticised the club during Rosenior's tenure as he lost large parts of the dressing room, particularly among the Spanish speakers.

It's something Alonso will have to reflect upon, but sources close to several players have expressed excitement about his appointment.

Perhaps significantly, the Spaniard has been appointed "manager" rather than "head coach" to reflect his seniority within a partnership involving key figures at the club, as they seek to rebuild after a turbulent campaign that led to the managerial departures of Enzo Maresca and Rosenior.

That is not to say Alonso will make every decision.

Chelsea have five sporting directors with defined responsibilities, and player recruitment will be conducted in collaboration with him and those figures, "tweaking" the need to add experience with long-term planning.

There will also need to be alignment on significant outgoings, especially if Chelsea fail to make Europe.

Alonso is known to be excited by the squad, but both parties know it still needs to be improved over the summer, with the Blues known to be targeting a centre-back, midfielder and forward at minimum.

There is also an acknowledgement within the club of past mistakes and it must work with Alonso - a former midfielder with Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich - to become the winning team they, and the fans, expect them to be.

Culture, squad and physical issues need fixing

Figure caption,

Semenyo magic earns Man City FA Cup final win over Chelsea

Chelsea are also facing cultural issues that continue to undermine progress. These were brought into focus by a protest march involving around 200 fans on Wembley Way on Saturday.

There is a growing disconnect between supporters and the club, as well as fans and players. In some cases, there are also divisions within the squad and between players and the wider organisation.

One contributing factor, as influential co-owner Behdad Eghbali has acknowledged, "getting that stability on the manager side is one of the things we haven't done right yet".

The hope is someone of Alonso's status and authority can help address that, reinforcing the club's ambition and improving communication with both players and supporters.

On the pitch, he will be tasked with improving the team mentally, physically and tactically. Questions have been asked about the squad's mentality, with accusations of players "downing tools" this term, having the worst disciplinary record in the division, and a poor record in key matches.

That includes a 14-game winless run against Manchester City and seven consecutive defeats in domestic cup finals.

Physically, Chelsea have been outperformed by opponents, having covered less distance than any other team in the Premier League this season, aside from a single exception at Anfield in the 1-1 draw against Liverpool last weekend.

Defensively, problems under Maresca earlier in the campaign evolved into wider issues at both ends of the pitch under Rosenior, whose six-game losing run without scoring ultimately led to his exit.

It was a closely fought match against Pep Guardiola's side, but interim boss Calum McFarlane was left bemoaning the fact "football can be cruel", believing his side deserved at least one penalty.

He added: "It's a really talented group - there's lots of quality. The fight and heart have been questioned at times, but in the last two performances I don't think you can question that."

There is quality, but plenty of work still to be done. Chelsea have a furious fanbase and gone from Maresca, Rosenior, McFarlane and now to Alonso in five months.

It's an ownership under scrutiny and Alonso has much to do, and a tough task in trying to bring it all together.