Chelsea: Marcos Alonso slammed the door on any need for Alex Sandro

Juventus may be ready to sell Alex Sandro this summer, so of course the rumours of Chelsea going in for him are again sprining up. Marcos Alonso has slammed the door on any need for a £50 million (or more) wing-back, and Emerson Palmieri is holding it shut.

Marcos Alonso may have pipped Cesar Azpilicueta for the most under-rated player at Chelsea FC. Alonso may go even further. Whereas Azpilicueta was always beloved if not fully appreciated (by outsiders, at least), Alonso is not only under-appreciated but a regular target of knee-jerk invective.

For most of last season, left wing-back remained one of Chelsea’s top transfer needs. Even with Alonso’s dominant performance, he was written off as being something between a fluke and a stop-gap. His lack of pace and mobility were viewed as fatal flaws, and cried out for a faster, more experienced “natural” wing-back. As a result, Alex Sandro spent most of the summer at the top of Chelsea’s transfer rumour mill.

The Blues never made the deal, for a variety of reasons including being too cheap, the usual mind-games attendant to dealing with Serie A clubs and the recognition that Marcos Alonso was – in fact – a top wing-back. Juventus may finally be putting Alex Sandro on the transfer market this summer, per Calcio Mercato. They will need to shop him elsewhere, because Chelsea have no need for him.

Marcos Alonso has become a rock in Chelsea’s starting XI. Only one outfield player has more minutes this season: Cesar Azpilicueta. More than filling a seat, though, Alonso has developed into the true wing-back people thought Chelsea would need to buy.

Must Read: Chelsea must do something drastic and stand behind a manager for once

He compensates for his lack of speed through intelligent positioning and timing on his runs in both directions. Last season he was the link between Gary Cahill and Eden Hazard on the left side.  His role was very vertical along the touchlines, which made his pace a liability.

This season, recognizing he cannot sprint up and down the touchline all game as traditional wing-back would, Alonso comes inside on attack. This extends the defenders trying to cover the space between the touchline and Eden Hazard. By leaving Hazard out wide, Alonso finds space in the box as Hazard attracts multiple defenders and the eyes of everyone else. In recent games, Alonso and Alvaro Morata were together in the box nearly as much as Hazard and Morata.

Alonso is still a full-back by training, though, so he knows his responsibilties behind the ball and his limits for moving forward. Opponents have not been able to exploit the space behind him as much this season. Part of this is because Alonso is aware of when he needs to drop back and cover, and also because N’Golo Kante can shift over towards the left half-space as Alonso moves up and in.

As a result, Marcos Alonso has put up similar numbers to Alex Sandro. Alonso has six goals and one assist, becoming one of the most effective free-kick-takers in the Premier League. Sandro has three goals and four assists. Sandro averages 2 tackles, 1 interception and .6 dribbles per game. Alonso averages 1.5 tackles, 1.4 interceptions and .7 dribbles per game.

Beyond Alonso’s prowess, if Chelsea come to believe they need an injection of speed on the left flank, they already took care of this with a Serie A purchase in January: Emerson Palmieri. Palmieri has been criminally under-utilized this season, a combination of Alonso’s control as left wing-back and Antonio Conte’s risk aversion. But the few times Palmieir has come on he has been a blur of leggy speed.

Next: Chelsea contribute lots of Blue to all-time best XI from London clubs

Chelsea paid a total of £38 million for Marcos Alonso and Emerson Palmieri. Juventus will expect at least £50 million for Alex Sandro. If Chelsea would not pay for him when they possibly needed him, they certainly should not now when they don’t.