Romelu Lukaku’s return to Chelsea has reinforced the optimism of team-mate Marcos Alonso for the coming season.
The Belgian striker returned from Inter at Stamford Bridge for £ 97.5million (€ 115million), having proved prolific in Italy.
Lukaku led Inter to their first Serie A title in a decade last season, scoring 24 league goals.
Having left the Blues in 2014, Lukaku joins a club that won the Champions League under Thomas Tuchel last season and Alonso is delighted to have the 28-year-old on board.
“I can’t wait to play with him,” the Spaniard said on the Chelsea official site.
“He’s going to be a big help to us. He’s a great player, it’s good to find him and I can’t wait to start training with him.”
Alonso, who scored the opening goal in Saturday’s 3-0 Premier League win over Crystal Palace, was also delighted to have fans back at Stamford Bridge.
He now hopes the team can build on last season’s success with another strong campaign on all fronts.
“We all feel it. It’s a huge difference. We’ve all been looking forward to this and it’s great to be back with the fans,” he said.
“I was very happy for this goal. The preseason has been difficult as usual, so I’m very happy to start the season like this. I look forward to the next one.
“We have to let our Champions League win for now and focus on the new season. There are a lot of things to play for. We have to start over like the end of last season, 100%, and step by step , we will get there.”
Sunday’s upcoming trip to London rivals Arsenal, where Lukaku will be in contention to make his second debut for the club.
