Chelsea began the Xabi Alonso era with a 3-2 victory over Fulham on Monday as Joao Pedro, Morgan Rogers and Cole Palmer scored in an entertaining Premier League west London derby.

The visitors made an explosive start at Craven Cottage, taking the lead after just 31 seconds when Palmer released Joao Pedro, who raced through and lifted the ball over Fulham goalkeeper Bernd Leno.

Fulham responded after Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez failed to deal with a Josh King effort, allowing the forward to equalise in the 23rd minute.

Chelsea regained control before half-time when new signing Morgan Rogers marked his competitive debut for the club with a goal in the 41st minute.

Maxence Lacroix helped create the opportunity, sending the ball across the area for Rogers to finish and restore Chelsea’s advantage.

Palmer then extended Chelsea’s lead shortly after the interval, scoring in the 49th minute to give Alonso’s side a 3-1 advantage.

The England international, who was left out of England’s World Cup squad, had already played a key role in the opening goal and produced a lively performance throughout the match.

Fulham, however, refused to surrender.

Gonzalo Garcia, making his debut for the hosts, reduced the deficit in the 54th minute after Sanchez could only parry an effort into his path.

The goal gave Fulham renewed belief and forced Chelsea into a nervous final period as the hosts searched for an equaliser.

Sanchez partially redeemed his earlier mistakes by making an important save from Ryan Sessegnon late in the game, while Chelsea also had to withstand sustained pressure from their neighbours.

Joao Pedro appeared to have scored again in the closing stages after a rebound fell to him, but the effort was ruled out for offside.

Chelsea ultimately held on through four minutes of stoppage time to secure three points and give Alonso a winning start to his Premier League tenure.

The victory was particularly significant because it came against Fulham manager Alvaro Arbeloa, Alonso’s former team-mate and friend from their playing days at Liverpool, Real Madrid and with Spain.

The two coaches had both managed Real Madrid during the 2025-26 season before taking charge of their respective London clubs, making Monday’s fixture an unusual meeting between close former colleagues beginning their Premier League careers at the same time.

For Alonso, the result offered plenty of encouragement, particularly from his attacking players. Joao Pedro scored early, Rogers found the net on his debut and Palmer was central to Chelsea’s attacking threat.

But the defensive performance will concern the former Real Madrid coach. Chelsea conceded twice and Sanchez was directly involved in both Fulham goals, leaving Alonso with areas to address despite the positive result.

Fulham manager Arbeloa can also take encouragement from his side’s response after falling behind twice. King continued to threaten Chelsea’s defence, while Garcia made an immediate impression with his debut goal.

Chelsea’s three points give Alonso an ideal start to his first Premier League campaign, but the narrow victory also underlined the defensive work required if his side are to challenge consistently at the top end of the table.