Xabi Alonso praised Cole Palmer's talent during his press conference introducing him as Chelsea's new manager. Palmer has trained under Alonso at Cobham after being left out of England manager Thomas Tuchel's World Cup squad.

Alonso described his early impressions of the forward's ability.

"We've had a few training sessions already, and from the first day you can see he's a special talent, a special player," said Alonso. "It's not easy to have one of those. You can notice his quality, how he's able to make the right decision in the right spot.

"I'm happy that he is in a good mood, with a good mindset to have a great season. We are looking forward to getting the best from him. We are able to build a strong team, with the proper stability to find the key players. For sure, Cole is going to be one of those key players in the attacking part."

Alonso was officially unveiled as Chelsea's new manager on a four-year contract during the press conference at Stamford Bridge.