Our first top-flight match of the campaign didn’t disappoint, with the west London derby against our neighbours testing the Blues in a variety of different ways. We broke the deadlock after just 32 seconds when Cole Palmer flicked a pass to Joao Pedro, who produced a deft finish to put us ahead.

Fulham hit back midway through the opening period via Josh King, but Alonso’s side went into the interval ahead when Morgan Rogers struck on his debut. Cole Palmer then netted soon after the restart and, despite Fulham pulling a goal back through Gonzalo Garcia, we held on to claim all three points.

After our win, Alonso highlighted several areas for improvement for his side. Yet the Chelsea manager was pleased to start his tenure with a win that showcased many different qualities we will need throughout the season ahead.

‘It feels very good, for sure,’ Alonso said in his post-match press conference. ‘We know how tough it is to win any Premier League game, and any away Premier League game. We prepared for an intense game, and I feel it was a very professional, solid performance, showing maturity and managing the difficult moments.

‘We got the lead quite early, had chances to score the second one, but after the equaliser we were through ten minutes when we didn’t choose the right moments to press and the movements.

'We corrected this well and in the second half, we felt comfortable without the ball, controlling the game. It was a performance to build for the future. There are things to improve for sure, but it was a good first day.’

Alonso added: ‘[It’s important] to manage in difficult moments, not to lose this emotional control. We know the Premier League is fantastic because sometimes the games are out of your hands.

'You don’t control them, so the players on the pitch need to know how to manage it – it’s as important as the tactics being right. It’s a process but today we went through good moments on that and we need to carry on that.’

After the full-time whistle was blown at Craven Cottage, Alonso and his players made their way over to the Chelsea faithful who had made the short trip down the Fulham Road to support their side.

The Spaniard believes such moments are important in building a connection between those on the pitch and those in the stands.

He said: ‘We are happy to play our first Premier League game of the season. My first official Premier League game with Chelsea felt great; in this stadium with our fans at the end, celebrating with them.

‘I had the feeling before kick-off that they were excited and they were hoping to see a good performance from the team, a serious one, and one they could see that we gave everything and fought for everything. I saw happy faces in the end and it’s important to create this bond. It’s early days, first game, but a good one.’