Chelsea head into their second Premier League match under Xabi Alonso with something the club has not enjoyed in a while: a nearly fully fit squad. The former Bayer Leverkusen manager confirmed that defenders Levi Colwill and Geovany Quenda have no injury concerns, midfielder Moises Caicedo has returned to training, and both Reece James and Cole Palmer are expected to be available for Sunday's fixture. For a manager still laying the tactical foundations of his tenure, that means a full training ground and genuine competition for places rather than the patchwork selections recent seasons have often forced on the club.

A winning start

Alonso's tenure at Stamford Bridge began with a 3-2 win over Fulham on August 24, a result that delivered more drama than the new manager probably wanted but three points nonetheless. That opener came without Caicedo, who missed the match due to what the club described as minor setbacks in his preparation. The midfielder joined from Brighton in the summer of 2023 in what was then a British-record transfer and has been a mainstay of Chelsea's midfield when fit, so his return to training restores a key option ahead of Sunday.

Cole Palmer, meanwhile, is looking to move past a frustrating campaign. Recurring groin problems limited the 24-year-old to only 26 Premier League appearances last season, a steep drop in availability for a player who had become Chelsea's chief creator since his September 2023 move from Manchester City. Alonso singled out Palmer's commitment to injury prevention work during the offseason, suggesting the playmaker has taken a more proactive approach to keeping himself on the pitch.

Colwill's carefully managed return

Perhaps the most closely monitored comeback belongs to Levi Colwill. The center-back has been working his way back from an ACL injury, the kind of setback that can derail careers when recovery is rushed. Chelsea's medical staff and Alonso appear to have taken the cautious route, giving Colwill a full pre-season to rebuild his fitness gradually rather than pushing for an early return. How his minutes are phased in over the coming weeks will be one of the quieter storylines to track as the season settles.

Geovany Quenda is also free of any fitness worries, while Reece James is expected to feature. James has missed significant chunks of multiple seasons with various muscle and knee injuries, so any confirmation of his availability is met with cautious optimism by Chelsea supporters who have learned not to take his fitness for granted.

Alonso's early impression

Alonso's appointment, confirmed in May 2026, ended one of the longer managerial searches in recent Chelsea history. His four-year contract, which officially began on July 1, represented a departure from the club's recent tendency to hire and fire at pace — an era under the current ownership that had already carried Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, Mauricio Pochettino and Enzo Maresca through the door and out of it in quick succession. The former Liverpool and Real Madrid midfielder, a World Cup and two-time European champion with Spain as a player, built his coaching reputation at Leverkusen, where he won the 2023-24 Bundesliga without losing a match, ended Bayern Munich's 11-year grip on the title, and turned a perennial contender into a genuine force in German football.

What stands out is how Alonso has communicated about his players' fitness. Rather than offering the vague non-answers many Premier League managers favor during press conferences, he gave direct updates on five different players. For supporters who have watched key men spend large stretches of recent seasons in the treatment room, that directness is itself part of the early impression the new manager is making.