Marco Palestra is the first signing of the Xabi Alonso era at Chelsea, and the Italian defender has explained why the new Blues manager had such an important part to play in his decision to move to Stamford Bridge.
Palestra has signed a contract until 2033 and will bolster Alonso’s defensive options ahead of the new campaign. The 21-year-old, who made his Italy debut earlier this year, listed several reasons why he was convinced to join Chelsea. Chief among them was our new man at the helm, Alonso.
‘It was very important,’ says Palestra.
‘I feel a lot of energy from him. Also, he is one of the best managers in the world [as you can see when] he won at Bayer Leverkusen. It’s important for me to have Xabi Alonso as the manager.
‘I have had two conversations with him and I’m very happy because he told me what he wanted from me. I’m very happy to know him and to start training with Chelsea.’
You can watch the full interview with CFC+, our new global content subscription service, by clicking here. In it the full-back also discusses Chelsea’s longstanding Italian connection, describes his style of play and outlines his targets at the Bridge. He has a message for Blues fans, too.
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