Credit: Imago

Evan Shaw

Sun 31 May 2026 14:59, UK

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Xabi Alonso is capable of putting a stop to Chelsea’s poor disciplinary record that saw them rack up 11 red cards this term.

That is according to former Everton chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who believes that it could take both a tactical and cultural reset from the new boss to halt that issue for good.

Alonso was recently confirmed as the permanent successor to Liam Rosenior in the Blues’ dugout, and now has the whole summer ahead of him to begin putting his ideas and plans in place.

The red card issue is one of the major problems for him to tackle, with the West Londoners ending the Premier League campaign with eight dismissals, a club record in a single season, which rose to 11 in all competitions.

Alonso’s appointment at Chelsea will see him take charge of a team that do not have European football to contend with next term, and Wyness feels that could benefit the new boss.

Keith Wyness: Poor Chelsea discipline is a ‘big red flag’

Everton’s former chief Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes Alonso will have already recognised the severity of the disciplinary issue at Stamford Bridge.

The capital club saw their tally of red cards reach an all-time high this term, as they laboured to a 10th-placed finish, and the new boss will be desperately trying to avoid a repeat of that in 2026-27.

Speaking on the latest edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, Wyness made it clear that the issue is a “big red flag” for Alonso and his staff, but he backed them to iron out the problem this summer.

“I think it is cultural, but also, Alonso will be strong enough to handle that. He was a very aggressive player in his own right, so he understands the tackles and the whole thing,” he said.

“He can do that from a culture point of view. But secondly, it’s also the way he’s going to set up the team, the distances between the lines, those sort of things that generate more last-minute lunging tackles and that will make a difference as well.

“They’ll obviously have recognised the red cards as a big red flag. There are ways that Xabi can manage through that and get them back into this. And again, it’ll be a start to the season with no Europe, which is going to help them focus on the league.

“He can handle the resolution both tactically and culturally to try and stop those red cards, 11 is way too many for a club like Chelsea.”

Enzo Fernandez likely to join Man City in player swap deal

Former Manchester City financial advisor Stefan Borson told Football Insider earlier this week that Enzo Fernandez could “easily” join City this summer, but they would not pay the £120million asking price.

The football finance expert insisted that his former club are not capable of paying such a lofty fee for the Argentine midfielder, but could send a player the other way as part of the deal.

Fernandez has made it clear that he is keen to leave Stamford Bridge in recent months, and there have been strong links emerging of late of a potential move to either the Etihad Stadium or Real Madrid.

However, Borson added that Madrid would also take a similar stance regarding a £120m deal, and would likely explore any possibility of striking a deal in another way.