Xabi Alonso (45), who failed at Real Madrid, returned to the touchline in just four months after taking charge of Chelsea.
Chelsea announced on the 17th (Korea time) on its website and social media, "Chelsea Football Club is pleased to announce the appointment of Alonso as head coach of the men's senior team," and officially released the appointment.
Chelsea added that "Coach Alonso will begin his duties on July 1 and has agreed to a four-year contract at Stamford Bridge," also providing an outline of the contract with Coach Alonso.
Chelsea said, "Alonso, one of the most respected figures in modern football, has already gained top-level coaching experience in Europe with Real Madrid and Bayer Leverkusen," and added, "in particular, he led Leverkusen to the club's first league title."
It added, "This appointment reflects the club's faith in his wide-ranging experience and leadership, tactical ability, leadership, character and authenticity," and "this was the key reason he was chosen to lead Chelsea's next-phase project."
Transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano posted on his social media that "Coach Alonso signed the contract with Chelsea today," and reported that "the contract is complete and finalized through June 2030."
Alonso, who had been unemployed after being dismissed as Real Madrid head coach in January, suffered a harsh failure at Real after failing to assert control over the squad and not even lasting a year.
However, Alonso's coaching ability was already proven on the German Bundesliga stage. Before moving to Real, he led the Bayer Leverkusen squad in 2024 to a domestic double (two trophies).
In particular, although Alonso fell short in the UEFA Europa League final, losing to Atalanta and finishing as runners-up, he was credited with leading Leverkusen's golden era.
Chelsea had been searching for a permanent head coach since dismissing Liam Roseñier (42) last month. Several managerial candidates, including Andoni Iraola of Bournemouth, Marco Silva of Fulham and Oliver Glasner of Crystal Palace, were in consideration, but the final choice was Alonso.
Chelsea has been playing the season under interim coach Callum McFarlane (41). However, Chelsea had to settle for runners-up after losing 0-1 to Manchester City in the FA Cup final held on the 16th.
Ultimately, Chelsea's leadership decided to give Alonso full authority to reform the team's structure, choosing the coach who failed at Real but proved his ability at Leverkusen.
Through Chelsea, Coach Alonso said he was "immensely proud to be the manager of one of the biggest clubs in world football."
He added, "Through conversations with the ownership group and the sporting directors, it became clear that we share the same objectives," and "we want to consistently compete at the highest level and build a team that can fight for titles."
He also said, "There is great talent in the current squad, and this football club has tremendous potential," adding, "It is a great honor to lead this team. Now the important thing is to work hard, build the right culture and lift trophies."
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