Joe Cole would welcome Xabi Alonso appointment as new Chelsea head coach but questions why Spaniard would want to put his 'reputation on line' at club

The Blues suffered a fourth Emirates FA Cup final defeat in their last four showpiece appearances at Wembley on Saturday as Antoine Semenyo's superb improvised finish secured a 1-0 victory for Manchester City.

It consigned The Blues to a 20th defeat in all competitions this season and means that the only realistic route back into Europe next term is via the UEFA Conference League.

Having won that competition in 2024/25 under Enzo Maresca, capped off last summer by winning the inaugural revamped Club World Cup in New York against Paris Saint-Germain, this has been a wretched campaign, signed off without any silverware and the departure of two managers.

Prior to the FA Cup final against City, supporters staged protests on Wembley Way against the club's BlueCo ownership of Behdad Eghbali and Todd Boehly.

Chelsea suffered five successive Premier League defeats under Liam Rosenior, which contributed to him losing his job in April, while interim head coach Calum McFarlane was put in charge until the end of the season.

Widespread reports emerged not long after the full-time whistle at Wembley that Alonso was in the final stages of agreeing terms to become the new Chelsea head coach - with the club announcing the deal on Sunday morning - but Cole has questioned why the former Liverpool midfielder would entertain working for a club he described as being "all over the place".

"The fact that it's dropped now, just after losing an FA Cup final, stinks of a PR move, which is what I think the club need to get away from," said TNT Sports pundit Cole.

"Journalists release news like that when they're in the know. It's like, 'we just lost but don't worry, we've got Xabi Alonso coming in'. This is what the club have got to try to get away from.

"They've got to get back to basics. What is the culture of the club? If feels too all over the place at the moment. Fans just want honesty.

"The owners came in and thought this project was going to work. They've spent a lot of money and it doesn't seem to be bearing any fruit, so they should be coming out and saying they're going to try something a bit different. That's the only thing that should be coming out of the club at this very moment.

"If you're Xabi Alonso, you're going to want to sit down and speak with Liam Rosenior, Enzo Maresca so you have a full idea of what has gone on behind the scenes. Does he want to put his reputation on the line? There will be other jobs for him as well.

"They need a senior man, and I'd have gone for someone like Carlo Ancelotti, but we're dreaming.

"The days under Roman Abramovich must have looked mental from the outside, but it was all about trying to buy the best players, we're going to try and get the best manager, and we will try to win everything.

"When we didn't, the manager got sacked, players got sold and others came in. It sort of worked. But this is just a little bit all over the place.

"If he's coming in, I'm sure it will be on his own terms, as he doesn't need it. If he is allowed to rebuild the club, what a talented manager we've got."

Alonso posted a link to a Marca news story on his own X feed on Sunday morning, with the words: "Xabi Alonso, a punto de convertirse en entrenador del Chelsea."

That translates as Alonso being "on the verge" of the Chelsea job.

Alonso had a forgettable period in the Real Madrid hot seat, having arrived to huge fanfare last summer as the successor to Carlo Ancelotti at the Bernabeu.

But the 44-year-old saw out just six months of his three-year deal before Florentino Perez dismissed him following defeat in the Spanish Super Cup final against Barcelona.

That decision has proven to have not solved many problems with Madrid ending the season without a trophy under Alvaro Arbeloa - and TNT Sports pundit Steven Gerrard does not believe his former Liverpool team-mate should be judged on his time in the Spanish capital.

When the news of Alonso's seemingly imminent arrival at Chelsea was put to him, Gerrard said: "It smacks of trying to take the attention away from a defeat. The problem with it is if they don't now deliver Xabi Alonso in the next two or three days, then the fans are going to get wound up even more.

"All the players in that Chelsea squad will want to play Champions League football next season. You want to be playing against the best. Xabi will walk in, and he will get their eyes and the attention of the whole dressing room. He's a coach, he's thorough, he's a great guy as well, and I think they'll want to play for him.

"He's a big name who has done ever so well so far. I don't think you can judge him for the last few weeks at Real Madrid. You need to look at the bigger picture where he's gone to Bayer Leverkusen and he's knocked Bayern Munich off the perch as a young coach. But, he's got top experience around any level of football as a player, cup finals, Champions Leagues, World Cup, the Euros.

"So I think he is the perfect name for Chelsea. Whether Xabi would like to jump into that, we'll have to wait and see in the coming days. If he can align everyone at the club, I think it could work."

Alonso guided Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title - secured without losing a game - as well as the German Cup in his first full season as a senior club manager during the 2023/24 campaign.

The World Cup winner with Spain has previously been linked with a move back to Liverpool, where he made 210 appearances and scored 19 goals during his five years of service.

Arne Slot was chosen to replace Jurgen Klopp a couple of summers ago, and when asked if Chelsea's move could be perceived as Liverpool missing out once more, Gerrard added: "The noises from Arne Slot, and there aren't any noises coming from above him, is that he's going to start next season as Liverpool manager.

"I'm sure Xabi's people would have spoken to Liverpool and asked what the situation is [with Slot]. If the noise is that they are going to stick with Arne Slot, then Chelsea might be his next option."

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