Chelsea were 2-0 up at Stamford Bridge on Saturday after 2 minutes and 29 seconds, the fastest the club has ever reached that scoreline in the Premier League. Only two sides in the competition’s history have hit it quicker, Leicester against Derby in April 1998 and Luton against Brighton in January 2024.
Jordan Henderson opened the scoring inside two minutes, whipping Cole Palmer’s cutback in off the far post, before Morgan Rogers made it two inside the opening three minutes. Joao Pedro added a quick-fire brace either side of an Evanilson reply, and Henderson curled in a free kick from 25 yards after the hour to turn the game into a rout.
‘He gets us going’
Rogers was unwilling to let Alonso brush off the credit for Chelsea’s fast starts.
“I put it down to the manager’s team talks. He gets us firing, gets us going,” the forward told reporters after the game.
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“We always want to start off on the front foot. It is about starting well and getting the lead.”
“A lot of games, especially at home, we have won after jumping on the back of early goals.”
Early goals in every scoring game
The Bournemouth blitz is the latest in a season-long habit. Chelsea have now opened the scoring inside the first ten minutes in every Premier League game they have found the net under Alonso, with Joao Pedro striking at 31 seconds against Fulham, a fourth-minute goal against Brighton, Rogers at two minutes against Arsenal and again at seven minutes at Hull.
The only league match in which Chelsea did not score early was the 3-0 defeat at Brentford, where they did not score at all. That loss ended a run that had made Alonso only the fourth manager in Premier League history whose side scored seven or more goals in his first two matches of a season.
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Alonso deflects the credit
Alonso has repeatedly played down his own role in the goal rush. His read on the Bournemouth win stayed with the players rather than the whiteboard.
“Today it was a very complete performance. We were in control for most parts of the game,” Alonso said.
He gave the credit for Henderson’s free kick to the training ground.
“He’s been using this international break to practice the free kick, and Austin [McPhee, set-piece coach] said he could score, and he did it really well.”
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The caveat was his defence. Bournemouth’s Evanilson pulled one back shortly after the restart, meaning Alonso’s side are still waiting for a clean sheet this season.
“The clean sheet will come. We were close and had a great lead, but the win with a clean sheet will come,” he said.
Sources: – [Chelsea 5-1 Bournemouth: Jordan Henderson’s stunning strikes help fast-starting Blues to bounce back win – Sky Sports](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/13592771/chelsea-5-1-bournemouth-jordan-hendersons-stunning-strikes-help-fast-starting-blues-to-bounce-back-win) – [Chelsea 5-1 Bournemouth (Oct 10, 2026) – ESPN](https://www.espn.com/soccer/report/_/gameId/401878775)
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