XABI ALONSO made a winning start to his Chelsea reign after notching a 3-1 win over League Two side Crawley Town in a behind-closed-doors friendly.
The Spaniard, 44, is getting the Blues geared up for the new Premier League season after penning a four-year deal to succeed Liam Rosenior.
Xabi Alonso guided Chelsea to a pre-season win over Crawley Credit: Getty
Liam Delap was among the goalscorers Credit: Getty
Jamie Gittens showed signs of living up to his £52million price tag by finding the net in the win over Crawley.
Liam Delap, who has also flopped since his move from Ipswich last year, got his name on the scoresheet as well.
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And Emmanuel Emegha marked his first appearance in a Chelsea shirt with a goal.
The Dutch striker, 23, finished last season with Strasbourg despite agreeing a SEVEN-YEAR contract at Stamford Bridge last September.
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Alonso, who is ready to sanction big-money exits, also used the secret showdown with Crawley to gauge which up-and-coming youngsters are in pole position to become Chelsea’s next breakout star.
Talented teenagers Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli and Landon Emenalo were named in the starting line-up.
And Reggie Watson, Reggie Walsh, Ryan Kavuma-McQueen, Calvin Diakite and Genesis Antwi came off the bench at half-time.
Dastan Satpayev, 17, also got his first taste of Chelsea action following his £3.3m switch from Kairat.
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Emmanuel Emegha marked his first Chelsea appearance with a goal Credit: Getty
Enzo Fernandez, who is preparing for the World Cup final after firing Argentina past England on Wednesday, was among some big-names not to feature in the clash.
Chelsea will be involved in another behind-closed-doors friendly against League One new-boys Bromley on Thursday before jetting out to Australia for the start of a money-spinning pre-season tour.
The West Londoners are set to face Western Sydney Wanderers and fierce rivals Tottenham, who they beat 2-1 in the final days of last term.
Alonso’s squad will then board another flight to Hong Kong for a meeting with Juventus before taking on AC Milan and Johor Darul Ta’zim in Jakarta and Malaysia respectively.
But the travelling party has not been finalised while Chelsea continue assessing their options in the transfer market.
Marco Palestra became Alonso’s first signing when he completed a £43m move from Atalanta earlier this month.
And the Blues are edging towards making another statement signing in the coming days.
A club-record £117m bid has been accepted by Aston Villa for Morgan Rogers.
