It was Rose’s RB Leipzig that ended Bayer Leverkusen’s remarkable 35-game unbeaten run in the Bundesliga - overseen by Alonso - back in 2024. Today the duo will reconvene at Stamford Bridge but in the colours of Chelsea and Bournemouth, having both moved to England over the summer.

Rose has noted in his first few weeks with the Cherries that what happens between both boxes in Premier League games can be difficult to manage. That is a sentiment Alonso agrees with from his time at the Bridge so far, although there are still areas his team can improve.

‘There's a moment that you can control, but to have total control of the game is almost impossible,’ said Alonso.

‘To be able to navigate that, even to feel comfortable, even to control or to have your emotional control when the game is not the way you want it, is very important. It takes time to have that composure to go through those moments.

‘It's the first year for Marco in the Premier League, for myself, and we'll have to learn quick, but because the game is so demanding, and because many teams stress you so much without the ball, you need to be able to manage the control and the no control.’

Owing to the lengthy pause while international football took centre stage, it has been a long wait for the Blues to return to action following the defeat at Brentford.

Alonso is hopeful the upcoming fixtures prior to the November break will be the moment his team finds greater defensive solidity and, with it, more consistent results.

‘I think a lot about blocks between breaks,’ Alonso explained. ‘Now we have five Premier League games, three home, two away, and we feel that until now, in certain areas, we were not able to build the stability.

‘Now we want to build the stability patterns to repeat things that will give us this platform for the future as well. Until now we have done a few things good, but other things that we have been missing. For sure, the data is there. In defence, we must concede less goals to have better chances to win games.’