Chelsea's Ambitions for the New Season: Gittens on Rogers and Alonso
On a bright winter morning in Sydney, a Chelsea squad still finding its shape for the new season already has a clear focal point: Morgan Rogers and the man who believes he can help define a new era at Stamford Bridge.
Jamie Gittens, speaking with the relaxed confidence of a player who has survived his first bruising year in England, did not bother to play down the scale of Chelsea’s ambition or the significance of that British record £117 million deal from Aston Villa.
“We want to win everything – that is our ambition, to win the Premier League, the FA Cup and win anything that we’re in,” he said on tour. For a club that has drifted too often in recent seasons, those words land with intent. Rogers, in Gittens’ eyes, is the statement.
“Bringing in a player like Morgan will hopefully raise the bar to win titles. He’s a top player. That’s all I can say. He’s just an amazing player.”
Rogers arrives into an attacking department already swollen with talent and egos, yet Gittens sounds energised rather than threatened. The battle for minutes is real, and he knows it.
“Our quality is there, for sure, as a team we have individuals on the pitch who can do amazing things but we have to try and put that together,” he said. “The squad is very competitive. We have to keep working hard and showing what we’re made of. Everyone is very positive, looking forward to the new season and to be better and to succeed, which is the main thing.”
Alonso’s imprint
If Rogers’ fee screams ambition, the arrival of Xabi Alonso has quietly altered something deeper: belief.
The mood around Chelsea had been flat for too long. Alonso has changed that before a competitive ball has been kicked. Gittens felt that shift immediately, perhaps because he already knows exactly how punishing an Alonso team can be.
During his time at Borussia Dortmund, Gittens faced the Spaniard’s unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen side. The memory still stings.
“That was hard! Because of the system, I’d say. It was a back three as well. They had Florian Wirtz, they had Jeremie Frimpong and, Amine Adli when we came off the bench sometimes, they had Piero Hincapie. Granit Xhaka as well. They were a real team.”
Now the architect of that machine is in his corner.
“He [Alonso] was obviously a top player so for him to come in and teach us is the best thing for us. A world class midfielder, he’s probably the best to ever do it. He’s a very nice guy. He talks to us individually, speaks to us about what we can improve on, what we can do better. As a player, that’s all you want.
“He’s told me to keep being positive, to keep on taking on players, to keep on creating chances and to keep on pushing myself to the maximum.”
The respect runs deeper than the tactical board. On tour, when Alonso drops a trademark cross onto a training pitch, you can feel the shift in temperature.
“It’s amazing, really,” Gittens admitted. “He does have a bit of an aura because he was a top player back in the day and obviously a top coach.”
That aura now frames every session. For players like Gittens, it’s both inspiration and a challenge.
A season to put things right
Gittens’ own Chelsea story has not yet matched the excitement that greeted his £48.5m move from Dortmund in 2025. One goal in 27 appearances, then a serious hamstring injury that cut short his 2025-26 campaign, left him stalled just as he was trying to accelerate.
“It was hard, because this was the first muscle injury I’ve had. I’ve never had hamstring injuries before,” he said. “It was a challenge at the start, but I’m better now so I feel more confident. I’m feeling much better, more confident now my body is better, the hamstrings are good, so I’m just waiting for the season to start. I have set myself some objectives, individually, that I will keep to myself.”
The response to that setback has been quietly ruthless. While others switched off in June, Gittens went to work. A solo training programme across Portugal and Marbella hardened both body and mind. The early signs are there: goals in pre-season friendlies against Crawley and Bromley, sharper movement, a player who looks like he has something to prove and no intention of whispering it.
Competition for places will be unforgiving. Rogers has arrived to start. Others will feel the same. That is the point.
For Gittens, this is not just another season. It is a reset.
“This is such a big club. I want to succeed here. I need to show people what I can do. I’ll keep working hard. I’ve shown glimpses, I would say. Small bits. But this season will be a good season.”
Chelsea face Western Sydney Wanderers next on Tuesday, another pre-season stop, another small stage. For a rebuilt squad, it is a chance to sharpen patterns and relationships. For Gittens, it is something else again.
With Rogers bedding in, Alonso’s ideas taking hold and a winger desperate to turn “glimpses” into something far more substantial, the question now is not whether Chelsea are aiming high.
It is how many of them can keep up with the standard they are setting for themselves.
