Chelsea’s pre-season success: Emegha shines, Gittens resurges
Chelsea’s quiet Cobham tune‑up ended with another win, another goal for a revitalised winger, and an early jolt to the club’s new attacking plan.
Behind closed doors on Thursday, Xabi Alonso’s side eased past League One Bromley 3-0, backing up last weekend’s 3-1 victory over Crawley. On paper, it is only lower-league opposition in low‑key surroundings. On the training pitches, though, the themes of Chelsea’s summer are already emerging.
Emegha strikes again – then worry
Emmanuel Emegha scored again. So did Joao Pedro. Chelsea’s new-look forward line looked sharp, direct and ruthless against Bromley, with Emegha once more justifying why the club moved early to bring him across from BlueCo sister club Strasbourg.
The 21-year-old arrived in London with serious pedigree: 26 goals in 65 Ligue 1 appearances, captaincy handed to him last July, and a long-term plan that originally had him slated to join Chelsea ahead of the 2026/27 season. That timetable has been ripped up. His impact has not.
Two games, two goals. Exactly what a striker needs when the man ahead of him, Joao Pedro, is firmly established as the first-choice No9. Emegha had to hit the ground running. He did.
Then came the setback.
During the win over Bromley, Emegha reportedly suffered a hamstring issue. The problem was serious enough for him to be omitted from Chelsea’s initial 27-man squad flying out to Australia on Friday. For a player trying to crash the pecking order before the Premier League season has even begun, missing a pre-season tour is a cruel interruption.
He was not alone on the absentee list. Fellow new signing Geovany Quenda was also left out, understood to be managing a slight problem that is not thought to be serious. The alarm bells are louder for Emegha, though, given the delicate balance of Chelsea’s attacking options and the fierce competition for minutes that Alonso is already fostering.
Gittens reminds Chelsea what he can be
If Emegha’s start has been eye-catching, Jamie Gittens’ resurgence has been quietly significant.
The winger, whose first season at Chelsea was wrecked by injuries and frustration, found the net again against Bromley. Pre-season goals do not define careers, but they do change conversations, and Gittens is forcing his way back into them.
His movement looked sharp, his finishing decisive. With places out wide suddenly crowded, every touch matters. Chelsea’s hierarchy are weighing up interest in Bayer Leverkusen teenager Kerim Alajbegovic, a Bosnia and Herzegovina international whose arrival would only tighten the squeeze on the flanks.
That interest comes with a clear consequence. Standard Sport understands Chelsea would have to consider selling Pedro Neto or Gittens, or allowing Gittens to leave on loan, if they chose to formalise a move for Alajbegovic. For the players already in the building, every training session, every friendly, carries an extra edge.
Right now, Gittens is responding. His form is a pointed reminder of the quality that tempted Chelsea to sign him in the first place, and Alonso will not have missed it. With Rogers on an extended break after the World Cup with England, Gittens has space to stake his claim, and he is using it.
Neto, Gittens and the wide dilemma
Pedro Neto’s situation is more nuanced. Chelsea are not actively pushing him towards the exit and have no immediate plans to offload the Portugal winger, who is also resting after his World Cup exertions. Yet the stance is not absolute. It is understood the club would listen to serious offers.
That nuance matters. It tells you how Chelsea see their squad: flexible, tradable, constantly in motion. It also underlines how fragile security can be for attackers on the fringes when a club of this size spots another emerging talent.
Gittens’ early pre-season form therefore lands at a useful time. While Neto recuperates and the recruitment department weighs up Alajbegovic, the 20-year-old is putting down markers in real matches, however low-profile they might seem from the outside.
Alonso’s early imprint
Strip away the closed doors and the modest opposition, and Alonso’s start at Chelsea has been exactly what any new manager craves: two games, two wins, goals shared around, youngsters blooded, and a clear sense of attacking intent.
Teenagers Landon Emenalo, Reggie Walsh and Reggie Watson all picked up minutes against Bromley as the club’s academy production line continued to feed into the senior set-up. This was not just a fitness exercise; it was an audition.
Alonso, still at the very start of his Blues tenure, has already shown he is willing to trust youth, to rotate boldly, and to test combinations before the stakes rise. The Australian tour will turn up the volume and the scrutiny, but the groundwork is in place.
Chelsea now head Down Under with momentum, questions and opportunities. Emegha must race time to ensure his hamstring does not stall a promising start. Gittens has opened a door that looked close to shutting. Neto will soon rejoin the fold with his own point to prove.
The friendly scorelines will soon be forgotten. The choices Alonso makes about this crowded, talented forward line will not.
