Gittens Backs Rogers to Lead Chelsea's New Era Under Alonso
In the winter sun of Sydney, where pre-season usually feels a world away from real jeopardy, Jamie Gittens is talking about titles.
Not minutes. Not cameos. Titles.
The Chelsea winger has thrown his weight behind Morgan Rogers as the man to ignite a new age of silverware at Stamford Bridge, after the England forward’s British record £117 million move from Aston Villa sent a jolt through the Premier League.
“We want to win everything – that is our ambition, to win the Premier League, the FA Cup and win anything that we’re in,” Gittens said on tour. “Bringing in a player like Morgan will hopefully raise the bar to win titles. He’s a top player. That’s all I can say. He’s just an amazing player.”
For a squad already packed with attacking talent, Rogers’ arrival ramps up the internal battle for places. Gittens knows it. He sounds energised by it.
“Our quality is there, for sure,” he said. “As a team we have individuals on the pitch who can do amazing things but we have to try and put that together. The squad is very competitive. We have to keep working hard and showing what we’re made of. Everyone is very positive, looking forward to the new season and to be better and to succeed, which is the main thing.”
Alonso’s imprint: from opponent to architect
If the transfer fee for Rogers is the statement, Xabi Alonso is the underline.
The new head coach has already altered the atmosphere around Chelsea, and Gittens has felt the shift more sharply than most. He has faced an Alonso side at full tilt. He remembers the difficulty of trying to break down the unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen machine during his Borussia Dortmund days.
“That was hard! Because of the system, I’d say,” Gittens recalled. “It was a back three as well. They had Florian Wirtz, they had Jeremie Frimpong and, Amine Adli when we came off the bench sometimes, they had Piero Hincapie. Granit Xhaka as well. They were a real team.”
Now Alonso is building his own “real team” in west London, and the respect from his players is immediate.
“He was obviously a top player so for him to come in and teach us is the best thing for us,” Gittens said. “A world class midfielder, he’s probably the best to ever do it. He’s a very nice guy. He talks to us individually, speaks to us about what we can improve on, what we can do better. As a player, that’s all you want.
“He’s told me to keep being positive, to keep on taking on players, to keep on creating chances and to keep on pushing myself to the maximum.”
The connection is not just theoretical. On tour, Alonso has even reminded his squad – and anyone watching – of the technique that defined his playing days. Gittens found himself on the end of a trademark Alonso delivery and could only smile.
“It’s amazing, really,” he said. “He does have a bit of an aura because he was a top player back in the day and obviously a top coach.”
The message is clear: the standards have gone up, on the touchline and on the grass.
From hamstring heartbreak to hard reset
Gittens’ belief in what Chelsea can become is sharpened by what he has already endured.
Since his £48.5m move from Dortmund in 2025, his Chelsea story has been stop-start at best. One goal in 27 appearances, then a serious hamstring injury that wiped out the rest of his 2025-26 campaign and halted his momentum just as he was trying to settle.
“It was hard, because this was the first muscle injury I’ve had,” he admitted. “I’ve never had hamstring injuries before. It was a challenge at the start, but I’m better now so I feel more confident. I’m feeling much better, more confident now my body is better, the hamstrings are good, so I’m just waiting for the season to start. I have set myself some objectives, individually, that I will keep to myself.”
The response was not to sulk but to vanish into the grind.
Gittens spent his summer running himself back to full sharpness through a demanding solo programme in Portugal and Marbella, away from the cameras but very much in the club’s thoughts. The early signs on this tour suggest that work is paying off: goals in pre-season friendlies against Crawley and Bromley have sharpened his edge and his case.
The competition for attacking spots, already intense before Rogers walked through the door, has now turned ferocious. For Gittens, that suits the moment.
A fight for status at a “big club”
For all the talk of systems, records and rebuilds, Gittens keeps coming back to something simple: this is Chelsea. That still means something.
“This is such a big club. I want to succeed here,” he said. “I need to show people what I can do. I’ll keep working hard. I’ve shown glimpses, I would say. Small bits. But this season will be a good season.”
The next step comes on Tuesday against Western Sydney Wanderers, another pre-season fixture on paper, another audition in reality. With Rogers bedding in, Alonso drilling his ideas and Gittens desperate to turn “glimpses” into something more permanent, every minute starts to carry weight.
Chelsea’s new era is being built in stages: a record signing, a serial winner in the dugout, a winger chasing redemption after injury. The question now is not whether the ambition is there.
It is who, in this crowded, hungry dressing room, will seize the right to define it.
