Chelsea 3-2 Fulham: Alonso Era Begins with Joao Pedro, Rogers, Palmer Goals
Thirty-one seconds—that's how long it took for Xabi Alonso's tenure at Chelsea to begin. By the end of the match at Craven Cottage, the Blues had survived Fulham's fightback and left West London with a 3-2 victory that was as exciting as the final score indicated. When Cole Palmer played, he acted as if he had been freed from a long season of injury and frustration. Within the first minute, he passed the ball to Joao Pedro, and the Brazilian did not delay, sending the ball over the stranded Bernd Leno to set a new record for the quickest goal ever scored in the opening match of a Premier League campaign in the competition's 34-year history. Alonso's managerial career at Stamford Bridge had certainly begun in a hurry, or at least with more direct opposition, since his counterpart was Alvaro Arbeloa, his former teammate at both Liverpool and Spain, who had briefly taken the Real Madrid manager's post last season. Fulham would not give in. In the 24th minute, Josh King equalised after a mistake by Robert Sanchez near the goal, giving the home fans something to cheer about as they faced their biggest local rivals. However, the work Chelsea had done in the summer proved fruitful just before halftime, when new central defender Maxence Lacroix moved down the right side and played the ball forward to Morgan Rogers, the club's £117 million ($159.47 million) record signing, who scored with composure to make it 2-1. The decisive moment of the first half came early in the second period. Joao Pedro, displaying the hold-up play that is now his speciality, passed the ball to Palmer, who scored by slipping it through Leno's legs to make it 3-1. That confirmed Palmer's return to top form after a season severely affected by fitness problems, which left him out of England's World Cup squad.  "After a tough season due to injuries and all sorts of other things, I have have put in extra effort during the summer and ever since I've been back," Palmer said afterwards. "I know what talent I have, so I'm able to give performances like that." Fulham were not done with the game. In the 54th minute, debutant Gonzalo Garcia scored by heading in a shot which Sanchez had only been able to parry after Timothy Castagne had tried it. The home side seemed to find a way back into the match, and Antonee Robinson came close in the 78th minute by chipping a ball Sanchez had blocked. The ball slipped dangerously wide of goal, but Chelsea kept their composure and secured the victory. There was also some noise off the pitch. When Enzo Fernandez, a key player for Argentina, the World Cup runners-up, and the subject of ongoing transfer rumours linking him with Manchester City, was presented during the second half of the match, he was jeered by the home supporters. In the future, Alonso will want to get both Moises Caicedo and the new full-back Marco Palestra back from injury to provide more solidity to a team that has shown great promise in attack but has been weak defensively. Goalkeeper Sanchez might also feel some pressure since Mike Penders has come back to the club from his sister side Racing Strasbourg. Nevertheless, for now, three points and three different goalscorers are all the impressive statement a new manager could reasonably expect to make in his first match.
