Xabi Alonso has challenged Chelsea to find a way to cope without Joao Pedro after the striker was ruled out for several weeks with a thigh injury.
The Brazil international is expected to miss Wednesday’s Carabao Cup tie against Liverpool at Anfield and is unlikely to return before the end of November. His absence leaves Alonso with a problem in attack after Chelsea failed to score in either of the two Premier League games Pedro has missed this season.
“He has an injury on his thigh and he is going to be out for a few weeks,” Alonso said. “Let’s see how many. We don’t want to predict on that, but he’s not ready for the next games.”
Pedro has scored five league goals this season and become an important part of Chelsea’s forward line alongside Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer. Chelsea struggled to create their usual attacking rhythm without him in Saturday’s 2-0 loss to Tottenham, when Alonso opted to play Rogers as a makeshift striker rather than select Danny Welbeck.
Welbeck is available for the trip to Liverpool, as is Emmanuel Emegha, who is in line to make his debut after recovering from a hamstring injury. The 23-year-old joined Chelsea from their sister club Strasbourg in the summer and scored 31 goals in 78 appearances for the French side.
Alonso said Chelsea had enough depth to deal with the loss of Pedro and would not use injuries as an excuse for poor results.
“Yes for sure,” he said. “This is why you build a squad. It’s a situation that can happen and you need to be looking for solutions, not looking for excuses.”
Liverpool next. 🔜 https://t.co/PBdYX510JL
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) October 27, 2026
Emegha’s availability is a boost for the side in the absence of Palmer at Anfield. The England international is suspended after receiving two yellow cards against Tottenham, a decision Alonso said the forward understood.
“We spoke,” Alonso said. “He knows the mistake he made, things that you can avoid. I hope that it’s not going to be repeated, and he’s aware of that. He’s mature and it was a mistake.”
The visit to Liverpool will also bring Alonso back to a club where he won the Champions League as a player in 2005. The Spaniard, who has managed Bayer Leverkusen and Real Madrid since leaving Liverpool, said he would celebrate if Chelsea scored.
“Of course I will celebrate,” he said. “With full respect because my warmth with Liverpool was there as a player. But now, I am in a different role, I need to support my team, I need to support my club, I fight for my club and if we score, I will celebrate with whole respect.”
Alonso was considered by Liverpool as a possible successor to Jürgen Klopp in 2024, when he was in charge of Leverkusen, but decided to remain in Germany. He said he was aware of the situation at the time but never held talks with the club.
The Chelsea manager has made a promising start at Stamford Bridge, although the defeat by Tottenham raised questions about his approach after Spurs enjoyed a vast majority of the possession.
Alonso said he wanted his side to control games with the ball but accepted there was room for improvement.
“You evolve, you adapt,” he said. “You want to have possession. Knowing the context, knowing what we are building, I think that we have room for improvement in that part. I think we need to play more confidently with the ball.”
