Chelsea team-mates teased Marcos Alonso before stunning free-kick goal at Bournemouth
The marauding wing-back had twice hit the woodwork in recent weeks
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Marcos Alonso has revealed that his team-mates were teasing him as he lined up to take the free-kick which led to Chelsea’s third goal against Bournemouth on Saturday.
The Spaniard sealed his side’s victory with an inch-perfect curling free-kick in the 68th minute of play, with Antonio Conte’s side running out 3-1 winners at the Vitality Stadium.
The strike marked Alonso’s first goal in eight games, though the marauding wing-back had hit the woodwork in recent matches against Crystal Palace and Stoke City.
As he lined up to take the set-piece, Alonso’s team-mates did not allowed him to forget his previous misses.
“Yeah, I hit the post twice already [in recent matches]," Alonso told reporters after the game. “When I took the ball, everyone was saying, ‘Please, one inch lower…’
“I was very happy because it was the goal which gave us the peace to relax and make the game more comfortable. So happy for that and hopefully more to come.”
The victory restored Chelsea’s seven-point advantage at the top of the table, with the west Londoners march towards this season’s Premier League title showing little sign of abating.
Five wins from their last seven games will now be enough for Conte to claim a title in his first season of English football, and Alonso claims he and his team-mates will treat every remaining game like a cup final.
“We have seven finals left, every game is going to be massive, we are going to have to play each game as the last one because we need the points to get closer to the title,” he said.
“The group is fantastic. We all know where we are going, we are all going in the same direction and that’s very important.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments