Chelsea name Xabi Alonso as head coach on four-year deal
Chelsea have officially appointed Xabi Alonso as their new head coach on a four-year deal starting in July 2026. The former Real Madrid and Liverpool midfielder has built a strong coaching reputation, most recently leading Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title. Alonso expressed pride in joining a club with significant talent and ambitions to compete for major trophies.
- ▪Xabi Alonso has signed a four-year contract to become Chelsea's new head coach, starting in July 2026.
- ▪Alonso previously managed Bayer Leverkusen, guiding them to an unbeaten Bundesliga title in the 2023/24 season.
- ▪He played for Liverpool between 2004 and 2009 but has never before managed a Premier League club.
- ▪Alonso described Chelsea as one of the biggest clubs in world football and emphasized shared ambitions with the club's leadership.
- ▪This marks Chelsea's latest high-profile managerial appointment as they aim to build a consistent title-contending team.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
{"@context":"http://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","mainEntityOfPage":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/chelsea-name-xabi-alonso-head-093000705.html","headline":"Chelsea name Xabi Alonso as head coach on four-year deal","datePublished":"2026-05-17T09:30:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-17T09:30:00.000Z","keywords":["Xabi Alonso","Bayer Leverkusen","Chelsea","head coach","Premier League","Real Madrid","Liverpool"],"description":"Chelsea have officially appointed Xabi Alonso as the club’s new head coach.The former Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid manager has signed a deal that will...","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Yahoo…
Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Yahoo Sports.