Xabi Alonso’s fingerprints were all over the hard-fought victory against Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Pedro Neto broke the deadlock shortly after the break when he snagged the ball past Jordan Pickford from close range. Jorrel Hato combined excellently with Morgan Rogers on the left-hand side before picking out the Chelsea winger, who was unmarked at the back post.

He then doubled the Blues’ lead in the final moments, sparing the blushes of Jordan Henderson, whose free-kick was blocked by the wall. Rather than taking a wild swipe at the ball that fell kindly at his feet, Neto held his nerve, feigning his initial strike before slotting it into the bottom corner.

Despite losing Emi Martinez midway through the second half due to injury, following a nasty collision with Jarrod Branthwaite, Alonso’s side managed to hold on, climbing into the top four of the Premier League and securing a long-awaited clean sheet.

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The Chelsea manager was delighted with the result in Merseyside – as he should, seeing as it was stamped with his signature discipline and resilience. So, with that being said, football.london has looked at five key talking points from the weekend’s clash.

Neto relishes special Chelsea role

Neto made an excellent impression again on Saturday afternoon, relishing his key role in the starting lineup. Under Alonso, the Blues winger has essentially transitioned into a wing-back… or a forward, who’s just tasked with an incredible set of out-of-possession tasks and responsibilities, which he executes without a fuss, meaning he often needs to pull his weight in the backline.

Regardless of how you want to define Neto, he’s quietly become one of, if not the most valuable, tactical assets in the squad. Of course, the Portugal international has the physical qualities and technical ability to fulfil his roles at either end of the pitch, but it’s his mentality which sets him apart.

Neto could’ve thrown his toys out of the pram in the summer when he was informed of his duties. But he put his head down, which, ironically, he doesn’t do so much anymore, and honed his craft, becoming an important player.

Acheampong blossoms

Like Neto, Acheampong has made great strides under Alonso, evidenced by his display on Saturday afternoon. The Chelsea defender was shown a yellow card early into the game, but he refused to be swallowed up by the occasion

He composed himself and marshalled the right-hand side for the remaining hour or so, suppressing Jack Grealish and, eventually, Tyrique George to excellent effect. Acheampong has grown into THE perfect right centre-half for the Blues: great on the ball, one-versus-one demon, tough tackler, aerial monster, and serial ground eater.

Henderson leads by example

Unfortunately, Henderson didn’t quite manage to score two goals of the season contenders this weekend, but he did lock down the middle of the park. It should come as no surprise that the Chelsea midfielder has hit the ground running, on and off the pitch: he seems to be the perfect teammate, firing up his colleagues after every action and contesting every duel.

Palmer gives Alonso his flowers

Upon the full-time whistle, Romeo Lavia and Maxence Lacroix, who were closely followed by Henderson, led the Chelsea squad over to the away end, where, together, they celebrated the victory with the travelling supporters. Then, following a period of applause from either party, Cole Palmer pushed Alonso to the front of the group.

While the Blues manager soaked up the atmosphere, Morgan Rogers raced around the back of the pack to single out Neto. With a little help from Joao Pedro, the Chelsea winger was also ushered to the front.

Henderson and Lacroix then took off their shirts and gave three of them to the crowd. It was a lovely moment, which the home faithful would have certainly appreciated after such an early morning!

Alonso’s impact at Chelsea obvious

After just seven games under Alonso, Chelsea are already 11 points better off than last season, when playing the same or equivalent opposition. Of course, it’s still early days in the Premier League, but the Blues have managed to win significant points from teams, and in the case of Hull City, a newly-promoted team via the Championship Play-Offs, they previously fell short against.

Chelsea FINALLY keep a clean sheet

Last, but by no means least, the long-awaited clean sheet. This weekend, Chelsea recorded a clean sheet in the Premier League for the first time since January 2026, when they defeated Brentford at Stamford Bridge, and an away clean sheet in the Premier League for the first time since December 2025, when they were held to a goalless draw by Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium.