Chelsea XI vs Fulham: Predicted lineup and team news as Xabi Alonso era begins

Chelsea begin the Xabi Alonso era against Fulham at Craven Cottage tonight, with Enzo Fernandez expected to start and Danny Welbeck available for the west London derby.

Alonso has several major selection decisions to make for his first competitive match after experimenting with different systems throughout pre-season.

There had been concern over Welbeck after the summer signing from Brighton trained individually at Cobham on Friday.

However, Alonso confirmed the experienced forward has only been managing a minor issue and can be involved against Fulham.

“He can be involved,” Alonso said. “He needs a couple of days not training too much because of a little thing.”

Emmanuel Emegha has also returned to training following a hamstring injury, although he did not feature in Chelsea’s final pre-season friendly against Real Sociedad.

Jordan Henderson has been recovering from a wrist injury, while Aaron Anselmino remains troubled by a hamstring problem.

Wesley Fofana is unavailable through suspension.

Fernandez is expected to be involved despite continued speculation linking him with Manchester City.

Chelsea had placed a £120million valuation on the midfielder, but their self-imposed deadline for interested clubs to meet that figure passed without a bid.

Alonso praised Fernandez’s approach since returning from the World Cup.

“Enzo is a Chelsea player. He is a top, top player,” Alonso said.

“He's training really well since he started 10 days ago with the team, very integrated, and we are happy with him.”

Fernandez is expected to partner Moises Caicedo in midfield.

One of the biggest attractions will be seeing Cole Palmer and £117m summer signing Morgan Rogers together in a competitive Chelsea side for the first time.

Rogers scored his first goal for the club during the 3-1 pre-season victory over Real Sociedad and is expected to start alongside Palmer and Pedro Neto behind Joao Pedro.

Alonso could deploy either a back three or four after using both shapes during pre-season.

Sanchez; James, Lacroix, Colwill, Hato; Fernandez, Caicedo; Neto, Palmer, Rogers; Joao Pedro.

All eyes will be on Alonso’s formation and how quickly Chelsea’s expensive new-look squad adapts to his ideas. The Palmer-Rogers partnership could be particularly important as the Blues look to begin their new era with a derby victory at Craven Cottage.

Will Xabi Alonso start his Chelsea reign with a win against Fulham tonight?