The Spaniard continues to play an important role at Stamford Bridge, as the Blues continue to hunt for silverware at various fronts.
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Chelsea defender Marcos Alonso feels that contributing to the attacking side of the game is equally important for wing-backs as much as defending. The Spaniard continues to play an important role at Stamford Bridge, as the Blues continue to hunt for silverware at various fronts under Thomas Tuchel. After starting the first six Premier League matches, Alonso was rewarded with a call-up to the national team for the UEFA Nations League climax. However, on his return to club football, he missed the next half-dozen league matches owing to Ben Chilwell’s recovery of form and full fitness. It continued until the English left-back suffered a knee injury last month against Juventus in the Champions League. Since then, Alonso has started five consecutive games for the Blues.
“It’s obviously never nice to see a team-mate injured and that’s the most important thing,” the 30-year-old tells the club’s website. “When you don’t play games, it’s always tough but trying to help the team win games is our main job.” Under Thomas Tuchel, Alonso has been redeployed as a wing-back yet again. It is a role he excelled in during the most recent Premier League title-winning season of 2016/17 for Chelsea FC.
Alonso likes the freedom to roam forward, enabling him to cause problems in the opponent’s penalty box. However, it is important to look at how the Blues have used their wing-backs this term under Tuchel. Not always high and wide, as they mostly were during Antonio Conte’s time in charge, the wingbacks have often been positioned infield. It allows space for the forwards to operate on the flanks and forces the likes of Alonso, Chilwell, Reece James and Cesar Azpilicueta to get involved in the build-up play.
“It depends on the formation of the opponent, if we are controlling the game and have more freedom to go forward or if we have to defend more,” Alonso opens up on the game-by-game tweaks. “I’m always happy with whatever. I love playing on the pitch and if one day I have to stay at the back and help the team then I will do it but it’s also a pleasure if I can go forward and help with assists or goals.
“I just try to listen to what the manager wants and what the opponent requires and try to help the team as much as I can. It’s important to adapt and find solutions to different challenges during a game or depending on who we play against. It’s good to have different options and try to have different ways to cause problems to the opponent.”
Chelsea wing-backs have been one of the main attacking threats for the Stamford Bridge club this season. Be it James, Azpilicueta, Chilwell or Alonso, they have all done a commanding job in providing the Blues with good attacking outlets. “I don’t know why but since I came here to Chelsea, all the defenders have always scored a lot of goals,” he continues. “The wing-back position is obviously important in attacking as well, even if in most of the games our main target is to defend.
“When we’re able to control the game and to be attacking for most of the time, I think it’s important for us to arrive into those positions as much as we can, to try to help the team with goals and assists.”
