"Be Patient" - Xabi Alonso Promises Chelsea Summer Signing With "Special Qualities" Will Get Opportunities | OneFootball

Xabi Alonso was full of praise for new Chelsea signing Emmanuel Emegha, whom he promised would have his "opportunity" despite his slow start.

Emegha is among the few Chelsea summer signings who have yet to make their official debuts for the club, alongside Marco Palestra and Jordan Henderson, who are nursing injuries. In Emegha’s case, an injury also played a part.

Joining from RC Strasbourg on a pre-agreed deal that was officially announced last year, Emegha reported in for Chelsea’s pre-season early.

Unfortunately, he sustained a hamstring injury during one of Chelsea’s behind-closed-doors friendlies against lower-league sides. Emegha was forced to miss out on the pre-season tour of Australia and Asia.

The 23-year-old has since returned to training, but it clearly halted his momentum at Chelsea.

The club still decided to keep him over Nicolas Jackson and Liam Delap, who have joined Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest, respectively. Emegha is also behind Joao Pedro and Danny Welbeck in the pecking order.

Emegha made Chelsea’s bench in the Carabao Cup second-round win over Luton Town last week, but did not get to play. In this game, Alonso started with Welbeck up front, before replacing him with Joao Pedro in the second half.

Despite Emegha’s seemingly bleak situation at Chelsea as the third choice, Alonso made it clear that the striker will get his chances.

“I see him playing on the last line, where he has space; he is such a big threat,” the Chelsea boss said in Friday’s press conference when asked about the role Emegha plays in the team.

“He has been here for a few months, he had an injury that he missed some part of the pre-season, sorry for him, but he is young, he has very special qualities and we hope that he feels better and he takes those steps that he is going to be more involved.

“Young players, when they come, they need to be patient, but knowing that for sure they will have a better opportunity.”

The pre-season hamstring injury is not the only fitness issue Emegha has had to deal with in the past year.

He had several hamstring problems last season at Strasbourg, including a muscle tear in December 2025 that forced him out for four months. In total, he was out of action for almost eight months and missed 33 games for the French club last term.

He still had an impressive record of eight goals and two assists from 18 appearances for Strasbourg across all competitions despite the injury-riddled campaign, but Chelsea would understandably want to be more cautious in managing his minutes early this season.

Additionally, given Joao Pedro’s current form and Welbeck’s strong start to the season, there is no reason to take unnecessary risks with Emegha.

This means the Netherlands international will likely have to wait even longer for his debut, but it may also benefit him in the long term.