SUNDERLAND 1-0 CHELSEA: Talking points from the Stadium of Light as the Blues fall out of the Premier League top four.

Xabi Alonso has plenty of work to do over the international break.

Following a pair of disappointing defeats to Tottenham Hotspur and Sunderland, Chelsea have conceded significant ground in the race for a place in the Premier League top four.

The Blues could have spent the international break in the comfort of a Champions League qualification place, but instead, having lost to the Black Cats at the Stadium of Light on Sunday afternoon, they're clinging onto a ticket to the Europa League, with only two points keeping them in the top half of the table.

Chelsea are not back in action until Saturday, November 21, when they host Leeds United at Stamford Bridge, and Alonso will be hoping for a reaction. In the meantime, the Spaniard will put those not on international duty through their paces at Cobham, fuelled by the disappointment on the River Wear.

So, with that being said, football.london has reflected on what was a disappointing defeat at the Stadium of Light.

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Alonso should've come out swinging

Xabi Alonso should have come out swinging after the game, like the Jose Mourinho of old. Rather than provide a measured analysis of the match and then beat around the bush when quizzed on the standard of officiating, the Chelsea manager should've leapt to his players' defence, piled the pressure on ProRef, formerly known as the PGMOL, and demanded an explanation – or, better still, an apology.

A well-structured argument or passionate rant of some sort would have gone down a treat with the supporters, especially those who had forked out hundreds of pounds to travel hundreds of miles to the Stadium of Light. Of course, it would put Alonso in a spot of bother with the Premier League, but he wouldn't have been out of line to contest the controversial calls.

It was bizarre to hear a manager who had just suffered back-to-back defeats to teams in the bottom half of the table, one of which being Tottenham Hotspur, turn his nose up at a get-out-of-jail-free card presented to him on a silver platter.

Of course, it wouldn't have plastered paper over all the cracks. The level of performance was not acceptable. Chelsea drowned in the physicality. They hardly managed to create a clear-cut chance, even once they began to dominate possession.

Alonso, generally speaking, hit the nail on the head with his analysis of the game. But he had the chance to play the 'us against the world card' and didn't, inviting unnecessary pressure ahead of the international break.

In case you missed it, here are the key points from his interview with Sky Sports:

On the Chelsea penalty shout, when Cole Palmer was chopped down inside the Aston Villa box, Alonso said: "I haven’t seen Cole’s actions, but there could be a chance that it could be given."

On the Sunderland penalty, when Brian Brobbey dragged Levi Colwill to the ground, Alonso said: "The other one, I think it’s an action where he can defend better. It’s our mistake.

"I was trying to find solutions. We were missing a bit of speed on the ball, a bit of patience playing against a low block. We didn’t create enough chances; we didn’t have enough patience or creativity to create chances. That’s why we were not close to scoring."

And, on Sunderland's physicality: "We were ready for that. We knew it would take a lot to come here and win. It wasn’t that far, but it was about detail and things we can do better. We could have done even better.

"We didn’t do enough to score what would have been the equaliser. It’s [the] Premier League, to be consistent in this block, we are still developing and improve.

"Today the feeling is not the best, but we have time to come back and reflect and come back for November and December and progressing..."

Chelsea wonderkid's absence

Chelsea certainly rued the absence of Josh Acheampong, who suffered a little knock in the build-up to the match. So far this season, the Cobham graduate has established himself as one of the first names on the teamsheet, and he may well be the most important defender in the squad.

Without his excellent ball-carrying, composure on the ball, ability to defend wide spaces one-versus-one, and incredible physicality, the Blues were a shell of themselves at the back.

Back four experiment fails

It must also be said that the change in system and personnel, forced upon Alonso in the absence of Acheampong and other injured players, didn't help. Neither Pep Chavarria nor Marco Palestra, who are full-backs on paper, are capable of playing centre-half, so Chelsea couldn't seamlessly shift from a back-four to back-three.

By losing that flexibility and stretching their backline, the Blues were often vulnerable to counter-attacks. Even when in possession, Chavarria and Palestra occupied the wide spaces, forcing Pedro Neto, Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers to stay narrow.

The middle of the park was also congested with three midfielders: Romeo Lavia, Moises Caicedo, and Jordan Henderson. Chelsea couldn't exactly go long either, with no conventional striker.

Palmer fails Tuchel test

Cole Palmer has the opportunity to show Thomas Tuchel what he's missing out on, having been left out of the England squad earlier in the week.

But the Chelsea midfielder fell wildly short of expectations for the second game in a row, leaving Alonso with more questions than answers ahead of the festive period.