Ask the Question (Very) Quietly… Can Chelsea Somehow Win the Premier League?

Chelsea Look Like Genuine Title Contenders Again, but How Can They Maintain a Challenge

As a Chelsea fan, even I understand why my club is so easy, even necessary, to hate.

We drop hundreds of millions each and every transfer window without an acceptable explanation as to where it came from, we hijack at least three moves every six months, and we have two of the most disliked players in England currently on our books - Valentin Barco and Enzo Fernandez have emphatically got rid of the ‘panto’ in ‘panto villain’. Even our manager is disliked in some quarters (not sorry, Liverpool fans).

But none of the fact that Chelsea are to some the most dislikeable team in the league changes the fact that our performance against Fulham indicates that we could somehow win it.

What a start to our season. ⚡️#CFC | #FULCHE pic.twitter.com/XvtDDuWkVU

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) August 24, 2026

I know I know, classic gameweek 1 delusion, we’ve seen it all before. But blimey, did that front three of Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Joao Pedro (JPMorgan!) look good, while £50-odd million centre back signing Lacroix looked worth every penny.

It’s far too early to be making title predictions, especially when it comes to the inevitably turbulent Chelsea, but here’s why the London Lions might just be about to launch a shock bid for their first Premier League title since 2017… and the one thing that can stop them.

Jo-Mo-Co

There’s only one place to start - Rogers, Palmer and Pedro look like they are going to do some serious damage to Premier League defences this season.

It’s not exactly a shock, as all three of them have shown exactly what they are capable of for a number of years in the English top flight already. What has taken everyone by surprise is the fact that they seem to have clicked instantaneously, something attacking trios rarely do.

The last time we truly saw an elite, seamless attacking partnership in the Premier League was back in the days of Salah, Firmino and Mane for Liverpool, and while the Blue’s front three have masses of work to do if they are to be mentioned in the same breathe, their opening day performance against the Cottagers indicates that they are certainly heading in the right direction.

JPMorgan are up and running. 📈 https://t.co/iAx2NU3stw

— Squawka (@Squawka) August 24, 2026

Palmer in particular surprised with his return to form, as his last 18 months at Stamford Bridge haven’t exactly been plain sailing - between various niggling injuries and a general loss of form, many thought that the 24-year-old's best days were behind him.

However, with his World Cup snub allowing him to fully recover from a recurring groin injury, and playing alongside his best mate Morgan Rogers and the permanently in form Joao Pedro, Ice-Cold Cole appears to have been revived - to see him twisting, turning, and dazzling once again in Chelsea blue was a sight to behold.

Rogers made a superb debut himself, scoring as well as creating five chances, while Joao Pedro was his effervescent best, scoring after 30 seconds, assisting, and being a constant thorn in the side. The signs are good up front - now we’re all hoping they all stay fit…

Alonso Ball

Xabi Alonso’s style of football was a breath of fresh air at Craven Cottage, if somewhat stressful. Though we had 18 shots on goal and a whopping 38 touches in the Fulham box, we also had just 38% of possession, allowing Fulham to boss the flow of the game.

Perhaps it was merely what the gamestate required - Fulham away is never easy, and had the game been played at the Bridge, the possession stat would likely have been flipped.

But regardless of whether the manner of victory made us Chelsea fans comfortable or not, it was certainly effective - we had the better of the game despite possession, and it appeared that everyone on the field has brought into Alonso’s back five set-up.

2025/26: Chelsea finished bottom of the Premier League for total distance covered, being outrun by opponents in every single match.

2026/27: Chelsea covered more distance [123.3km] than any other club in the Premier League. And it’s only Matchday 1.

The Xabi Alonso effect. pic.twitter.com/xGIOfdSK5m

— ChelsTransfer (@ChelsTransfer) August 24, 2026

The Spaniard’s tactics indicate a manager unafraid to play to his squads strengths, which in Chelsea’s case is by far and away their attacking diversity - using the width of his wing-backs to draw Fulham wider, Alonso manipulated space for his star forwards, ensuring he gave them every opportunity to do maximum damage.

Because of the width, there is more space for opponents to deal their own damage through the middle of the park, and there are certainly aspects of the formation that Alonso needs to tweak - Colwill in particular was exposed by the space in the left-centre channel - but it’s high risk, high reward. If Chelsea steal it, there are a number of different ways forward, and quickly.

The early signs were immensely promising, and though there are a few creases to iron out (don’t worry, we’ll get to those), this was the most convincing Chelsea had looked in attack in a long, long time - it seems Alonso’s aura and ideas have already rubbed off on the players.

The Sanchez Conundrum

There is one major thing that is undoubtedly holding Chelsea back - Robert Sanchez. For years I’ver been saying he shouldn’t be anywhere near the team, even when he was starting to win everyone over with some notable shot-stopping performances under Enzo Maresca. He didn’t fool me for one moment.

Between his often wayward possession, scarcely believable inconsistency, and his penchant for forgetting he has arms, Sanchez is not a goalkeeper that should be in the thick of a Premier League title fight. The sort of player that you’d think would succumb to the pressure of a neck and neck sprint to the finish, his presence in goal would hinder more than it would help.

To illustrate this fact, it took the former third-choice Brighton keeper less than half an hour to show what he’s capable of without this pressure, allowing a hard hit but easily saveable Josh king shot to skid below him after 23 minutes, allowing Fulham to level the game.

Though Rogers and then Palmer reinstalled and then extended Chelsea’s lead, Sanchez ensured that no one could get too comfortable with another error, this time pushing a tame Timothee Castagne shot into the path of debutant Gonzalo Garcia, who instinctively nodded home.

He made a couple of saves, yes, but it is clear that there is not as much trust in the goalkeeper as there should be, and if Chelsea are to mount a title charge this season, they cannot afford for Sanchez to be part of it.

Xabi Alonso with Penders next game pic.twitter.com/JS2pQomUvp

— 🎈 (@CFC_Decatio) August 24, 2026

With the highly-rated Mike Penders waiting in the wings for his first opportunity in blue, Xabi Alonso must be thinking that it is nearly time for a Thibaut Courtois-style introduction - the young Belgian fits the play-from-the-back style perfectly, and already boasts significant senior experience, having been one of Strasbourg’s best players last season as the French outfit charged to the Conference League semi-finals.

Chelsea have been a chaotic, disorganised shell of their former selves over the last four years or so, but there is no denying that right now, after their opening weekend showing, they are the most likely candidates to wrestle Arsenal for the title.

The goalkeeper needs to change, the forwards need to stay fit and certain disgruntlements within the side need to be settled sooner rather than later, but that is truly the only thing standing between Xabi Alonso’s tricky blues and a return to Premier League glory.