Alonso had made Henderson one of his top targets to add experience to a largely youthful side following the England international’s departure from Brentford at the end of last season.
LONDON: Xabi Alonso praised Jordan Henderson after the Chelsea midfielder rolled back the years with a double in the 5-1 demolition of Bournemouth on Saturday.
Henderson took just 68 seconds to put Chelsea ahead at Stamford Bridge with his first goal for the club.
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The 36-year-old set the tone for Chelsea’s stroll in the west London sunshine with a precise finish from Cole Palmer’s pass.
Henderson turned provider two minutes later as his pass reached Morgan Rogers, whose shot deflected in off Antonio Silva.
It was the second-fastest goal and assist combo in Premier League history.
Joao Pedro struck twice, either side of Evanilson’s reply for Bournemouth, before Henderson capped his impressive performance in the 70th minute.
Henderson whipped a superb free-kick past Bournemouth goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic to the delight of Chelsea fans, who urged the hat-trick chasing midfielder to shoot every time he got the ball in the closing stages.
The former Liverpool captain’s influential display came in just his second appearance for Chelsea following his close-season arrival on a free transfer.
Alonso had made Henderson one of his top targets to add experience to a largely youthful side following the England international’s departure from Brentford at the end of last season.
“We signed him for everything and if he is able to score two beauties like today we are more than happy for him,” Alonso said.
“Apart from the goals he has done many good things. He was always involved in the action, giving instructions to the team-mates, he needs to communicate a lot. It was a very good midfield performance.”
– ‘A complete performance’ –
After failing to win any of their previous three league games — including a dismal 3-0 loss at Brentford before the international break — this was a much-needed result for Alonso.
The Spaniard is in his first season in charge but can expect scrutiny if he fails to assemble a cohesive unit from Chelsea’s expensively assembled squad.
“Today was a very complete performance, we were in control for most of the game. We had good stability,” Alonso said.
“Overall happy with the game, many positives to take for the future and we have to keep going.”
The former Real Madrid boss was surprised to see Chelsea strike twice in the first three minutes, adding: “We always try to start the game with good energy, but I have no explanation, no credit to me.
“It has never happened to me to score so many early goals. Let’s see if we can keep doing that.
“Maybe I prefer to score the first one in the last minute! It will happen one day.”
Alonso’s hopes of challenging for Champions League qualification and eventually competing for the Premier League title were boosted on Saturday when England forward Palmer signed a new contract keeping him at the club until 2034.
“Happy for him and very happy for the club as well. I’m sure the fans are happy to have Cole for years,” Alonso said.
“We need to push, we need to help him to have success. He is important in what we are building.
“When you are young you want to keep the best ones for years. We believe Cole is going to be a top-class contract for many years. The longer he is here the better.”
