Xabi Alonso has hailed an ‘outstanding’ Chelsea star (Photo: Getty) Xabi Alonso has heaped praise on one of his Chelsea players, likening him to a former Real Madrid teammate and Ballon d’Or winner. Chelsea have enjoyed a great start to the season under new manager Alonso, winning four of their opening five games across all competitions and only narrowly losing to champions Arsenal last week. Their formidable attack has already notched up 16 goals, though they face a tricky test on Saturday, against Hull City who are yet to concede in the Premier League this season. Cole Palmer and £117million summer signing Morgan Rogers have earned plenty of plaudits but it is Joao Pedro who was recently voted Premier League Player of the Month for August. Sign up for In The Mixer, Metro's football newsletter Get exclusive analysis and previews of the biggest games every Friday. Sign up now for free. The centre-forward, who moved to Stamford Bridge from Brighton last year in a transfer worth up to £60m, has scored twice and assisted two in the opening three league games. Last season, Pedro was a rare bright spot in an otherwise awful campaign for the Blues, recording 20 goals and nine assists, and was named Chelsea Player of the Season. And Alonso believes the 24-year-old should already be considered among the best No.9s in the world, like Manchester City superstar Erling Haaland. Joao Pedro has been voted Premier League Player of the Month for August (Photo: Getty) ‘If you count how many top strikers we have in the Premier League, I am sure that Joao is there. So I would rate him that way,’ the Chelsea manager said in his pre-match press conference. ‘He has been top. Not just football-wise, personality-wise. His maturity, his desire. ‘He has a very strong goal this year: to have a great season, to score many goals, and to be a nominee for not just this month but more months. Karim Benzema won five Champions Leagues and the Ballon d’Or (Photo: Getty) ‘I am not surprised, but really happy with the kind of player that we have here with Joao.’ The praise for Pedro did not stop there however, with Alonso positively comparing the Brazil international to one of the greatest centre-forwards of the last decade: Karim Benzema. The pair were teammates at Real Madrid where the Frenchmen won four La Liga titles and five Champions Leagues across a 14-year spell, which culminated with him lifting the Ballon d’Or in 2022. ‘In many things he reminds me of him,’ Alonso added, boldly tipping Pedro to emulate Benzema’s great success. ‘Because he is good in the box, he is good out of the box, he is good coming to the left side, he is good with the head. He is very complete and he is intelligent. ‘He is still young. He still has things to develop. But he has many, many absolutely outstanding qualities.’ For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
Hull haven't conceded yet and they are the team I have been most wrong about so far this season. It probably can, but I am still going for Chelsea to win this. The Tigers have defended brilliantly so far, but they are not going to keep out Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Joao Pedro.
Arsenal will look to extend their perfect start to the new season when they face Sunderland at the Stadium of Light on Saturday (20:00 BST) in the Premier League. Arsenal have also won all three of their league games so far this campaign, making a strong start to the defence of the title they won last season. Sunderland have bounced back well after an opening-weekend loss to Ipswich Town, taking four points from games against Fulham at home and Brentford away in their subsequent fixtures.
BBC Sport examines some of the key themes before Saturday's match (15:00 BST), with Alvaro Arbeloa seeking his first points as Fulham boss against his former club Liverpool. Liverpool are chasing a third win in the space of eight days after Andoni Iraola's first Premier League victory as Reds boss, a comfortable 2-0 success at Ipswich, was followed by Wednesday's victory over Atletico Madrid in his first Champions League match as a manager. Alexander Isak scored twice at Portman Road, meaning he has already equalled his league tally from an injury-disrupted 2025-26 campaign, and the Swede is now aiming to score in three consecutive top-flight games for the first time in 18 months.
BBC Sport examines some of the key themes before Saturday's match between Crystal Palace and Ipswich (15:00 BST), with newly promoted Town hoping to avoid a third consecutive defeat. Crystal Palace earned their first Premier League win under Pierre Sage by beating Fulham 3-2 last weekend, but the head coach was notably magnanimous afterwards, admitting he was "disappointed for the other team and the coach, they had opportunities too". Sage stressed Boro were "a really good team", adding: "I want to congratulate them – the score is for us, but they played well."
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