After a season of stress and turmoil, Chelsea FC is ready for a reset.
The London-based club is set to announce former Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso as its new head coach. Sources indicate that Alonso will join on a four-year contract and that his formal hiring announcement will come before Chelsea’s penultimate Premier League match against Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday, May 19.
Alonso will be the third full-time manager to join Chelsea this season. The club kicked off its 2025-26 campaign under coach Enzo Maresca, but a poor run of form and disagreements over player contracts caused him to walk out at the start of the new year. Chelsea then poached Liam Rosenior from its sister club Strasbourg in France. It gave Rosenior a six and a half year contract; it dismissed him after just three turbulent months. The club currently sits in ninth place in the Premier League and is under the care of interim coach Callum McFarlane.
While Chelsea evaluated several candidates for the role, including Bournemouth coach Andoni Iraola, it shared that Alonso was always its top choice.
A record of success
When Alonso retired from his playing career in 2017, he did so as one of the winningest players in recent history. He took home a World Cup and two European Championships with the Spanish national team, plus two Champions League titles, three Bundesliga titles and one La Liga title during his years with Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.