Xabi Alonso tells Chelsea to replace two players and sign £51m World Cup star

Xabi Alonso during his Chelsea unveiling (Picture: Sky Sports)

Xabi Alonso

has reportedly informed

Chelsea

to sign a new goalkeeper as he has reservations over both

Robert Sanchez

and

Filip Jorgensen

.

Alonso, the former

Liverpool

Real Madrid

midfielder, held his first press conference as Chelsea manager on Tuesday.

The Spain legend

officially took charge of the Blues at the start of July

but has been in close contact with Stamford Bridge bosses ever since signing a four-year deal back in May.

Alonso will hope to bring in several of his own signings this summer to bolster a Chelsea squad that finished just 10th in the

Premier League

last season.

The west London club have

already signed Italy international Marco Palestra in a £47m deal from Atalanta

and are set to bring in a new left-back to replace the departed

Marc Cucurella

Alonso also intends to sign a new goalkeeper as he does not believe Sanchez or Jorgensen are at the level required for a side he intends to turn into title contenders.

Sanchez kept his place in the Chelsea team last season despite some high-profile mistakes and

several pundits have suggested the Spaniard should be replaced

Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez could be replaced (Picture: Getty)

The same can be said for Jorgensen, who has

informed Chelsea of his desire to leave this summer

as he wants to be a No. 1 elsewhere.

As for who Alonso wants between the sticks at Stamford Bridge, Portuguese outlet

Correio da Manha

say Chelsea are set to make an approach for Porto’s Diogo Costa following a request from the new manager.

It is claimed Alonso ‘admired’ Costa before the World Cup but his solid performances for Portugal only increased his desire to welcome him to Chelsea.

Porto captain and Portugal No. 1 Diogo Costa (Picture: Getty)

Costa, 26, has spent his entire career at Porto, where he is captain, and earned 48 international caps for Portugal.

But Alonso will find it hard to prise Costa away from the Portuguese giants despite the presence of a release clause worth 61m euros (£51m) as Chelsea are currently only willing to pay 40m euros (£34m).

Porto are unlikely to accept a lower fee given Costa’s strong showing at the World Cup and the fact the likes of Bayern Munich and PSG have also been linked with the shot-stopper.

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that

supports HTML5 video

faced a similar scenario with Mike Maignan last summer

and may have ended up regretting pulling out of a deal for the AC Milan star and France No. 1.

Speaking at his Stamford Bridge unveiling, Alonso said Chelsea were a club ‘with great potential’ despite their struggles last season.

‘The excitement [for taking the job] is very simple, it’s the club, the squad, and the opportunity to come to this great club,’ he said.

‘I want to be part of this club, working together with the sporting directors, with the players and with the staff around me in Cobham.

‘We want to create excitement [in the team], to have that bond with the supporters and to win games and be successful.

‘I see this as a club with great potential. There is a strong base here already and now we want to keep building to ensure we are competitive on the pitch.’

Alonso’ first Premier League game in charge of Chelsea is a west London derby against Fulham on August 24.

Home

divider

Sport

Football

Related topics

Chelsea FC

Chelsea transfer news

Portugal football team

Transfer News and Rumours

World Cup

Nicky Butt says Man Utd star could cost England in World Cup semi-final

Channel: Football

2 hours ago

By

Louis Sealey

FIFA confirm World Cup decision after Argentina make 'special request' for England clash

7 hours ago

Tom Olver