It will have come as a surprise to see John Terry and Dele Alli watching the game together on Saturday evening as Chelsea suffered a shock home defeat to Tottenham at Stamford Bridge.

A mistake, resulting in an own goal scored by Mike Penders, before a stunning solo effort from Mathys Tel saw Roberto De Zerbi’s side pick up their second win in 42 games at Stamford Bridge in all competitions.

For Xabi Alonso, it was his first defeat as Chelsea manager at Stamford Bridge. The feeling is that Alonso got his tactics completely wrong, having been forced to replace Joao Pedro after an injury in training.

Dele Alli teases John Terry as Tottenham secure 2-0 victory

Before the game, it came as a surprise to see Dele Alli and John Terry taking the game in together, among the hospitality suites at Stamford Bridge. Dele posted an image of the duo smiling before it all started.

Then, Dele posted a video of Terry shaking his head after Penders had punched a Tottenham corner into his own net. Finally, a third post after full-time. Ex-Spurs man Dele posted an image of Terry’s empty seat.

It was a surprise result, and a game Chelsea had been expected to win given the history between the two sides in this fixture. Yet, Dele was able to tease Terry on social media by the end of the London derby.

One step forward, two steps back for Chelsea and Alonso

It has been a common theme at Chelsea. Two brilliant wins against Bournemouth and Everton, a clean sheet, and then a complete U-turn, and Alonso’s side look as though they are made of glass once again.

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink explained it well on Stadium Astro. He said: “The problems are not resolved yet. You need 10 games with those kinds of performances [B’mouth, Everton]. It’s a process; it takes time.”

Plenty will be taken from the loss. Alonso now knows that without Pedro, Danny Welbeck is needed. He now knows that as good as Moises Caicedo and Jordan Henderson are, they can’t be outnumbered.

There is truth in the saying that managers learn more from a defeat than a win. While disappointing, this is another step towards Alonso creating the finished product. But it will take time and losses to get there.