Chelsea

• 1
  Chelsea have a new manager yet again — Xabi Alonso took over in the summer, their fifth permanent boss under the current ownership. He arrives with real pedigree though: he won an unbeaten Bundesliga title with Bayer Leverkusen before a spell at Real Madrid.
• 2
  Chelsea signed Aston Villa's World Cup-winning goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez for a strikingly low £7.5m this summer. A serious upgrade between the posts for not much outlay — good value-spotting, even by Chelsea's usual standards.
• 3
  French centre-back Maxence Lacroix arrived from Crystal Palace for around £52m, fresh off representing France at this year's World Cup. Worth mentioning if Palace comes up in conversation — a smart, defence-first signing rather than a flashy one.
• 4
  Chelsea's early season has been a rollercoaster: 16 goals in their first five games across all competitions, but the defence has looked shaky doing it. Exactly the kind of team that's brilliant to watch and stressful to support.
• 5
  Alonso's job now is turning that entertainment into consistency. Chelsea fans have learned not to get too attached to any one manager's project, but this is the most credentialed appointment they've made in years — worth flagging that cautious optimism rather than either extreme.