Earlier this summer, Chelsea bolstered their squad with the signing of 21-year-old Marco Palestra (£5.5m) from Atalanta in a deal worth up to £47 million ($62m).
Palestra arrived after an outstanding loan spell at Cagliari, making 37 Serie A appearances on his way to winning Serie A Defender of the Season.
After a pre-season in which he featured heavily, we take a look at Palestra’s Fantasy Premier League (FPL) prospects.
ALONSO’S TACTICS
Before assessing what Marco Palestra could bring to Chelsea, it’s important to understand how new head coach Xabi Alonso is likely to set up.
At Bayer Leverkusen, Alonso mainly used a 3-4-2-1 formation. One wing-back would stay deeper while the other pushed high into attacking areas. This created overloads without sacrificing defensive balance.
At Real Madrid, Alonso kept the same principles but became more flexible. He switched between a back three and a back four depending on the opposition. His side still dominated possession and built attacks patiently. The forwards rotated regularly, while the full-backs provided width. Out of possession, Madrid remained compact and looked to win the ball back quickly in dangerous areas.
During pre-season with Chelsea, we’ve seen both set-ups. Palestra has played a part in both systems, too, encouragingly.
The above images from BBC Sport show different Chelsea set-ups in pre-season
PALESTRA’S CAREER SO FAR
Palestra joined Atalanta’s academy in 2014 and progressed through every age group before making his senior debut in the Europa League in December 2023. He later featured in both semi-finals as Atalanta lifted the first major European trophy in the club’s history.
The 2024/25 campaign brought more milestones. Palestra made his Serie A debut on the opening weekend and finished the season with 16 appearances in all competitions. He also made his Champions League debut and featured three times in the competition. Later that year, he came off the bench in the UEFA Super Cup against Real Madrid.
Palestra also represented Italy at every youth level from Under-18 to Under-21. His senior international debut arrived in March 2026 during the World Cup qualifying play-offs.
A loan move to Cagliari in 2025 proved to be the turning point. Regular minutes helped him develop quickly. He scored his first senior goal in January 2026 and became one of Serie A’s standout performers. By the end of the campaign, he had been named Serie A Defender of the Year. Those performances convinced Chelsea to secure his signature this summer.
| Season | Club | League starts (sub apps) | Mins | Goals | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024/25 | Atalanta | 2 (7) | 219 | – | – |
| 2025/26 | Cagliari | 34 (3) | 3085 | 1 | 4 |
POSITION AND VERSATILITY
We’ve established that Palestra has both the durability and consistency to perform at the highest level. But where can the Chelsea defender play?
| Position | Appearances in all comps/age groups |
|---|---|
| Right wing-back | 82 |
| Left wing-back | 32 |
| Right-back | 30 |
| Central midfield | 6 |
One of Palestra’s biggest strengths is his versatility. Most of his appearances have come at right wing-back, but he has also featured extensively at left wing-back and right-back. Earlier in his career, he even played in central midfield.
That flexibility makes him a natural fit for Xabi Alonso. Whether Chelsea line up with a back three or a back four, Palestra has already shown he can adapt to a variety of roles.
His arrival also gives Alonso greater tactical flexibility. Palestra can operate as both a full-back and wing-back, while Reece James (£5.5m) has the ability to feature at right centre-back or step into central midfield. That combination would allow Alonso to switch between a back three and a back four without making personnel changes.
It also means that if fellow new boy Pep Chavarria (£5.0m) gets a game on the left, it doesn’t necessarily mean a benching for Palestra.
ATTACKING THREAT
If Palestra establishes himself as a regular starter, FPL managers will naturally want to know what attacking threat he offers.
His best attacking return came during the 2022/23 campaign with Atalanta’s Under-23 side, where he registered one goal and 10 assists. More recently, he contributed one goal and four assists during his loan spell at Cagliari as they finished 14th in Serie A.
However, those numbers don’t tell the full story. Palestra was one of Serie A’s most creative defenders in 2025/26, creating 31 chances from open play and completing 27 accurate crosses. He also completed 70 successful dribbles – the most of any defender across Europe’s top 10 leagues – underlining his ability to carry the ball into dangerous areas.
He had 29 shots, too, although that only amounted to an xG of 1.80.
There is reason to believe his attacking output could improve under Alonso. During Bayer Leverkusen’s unbeaten Bundesliga title-winning campaign, Alonso’s wing-backs were central to the team’s attacking play. Alejandro Grimaldo finished the season with 10 goals and 13 assists, while Jeremie Frimpong added nine goals and seven assists. If Alonso adopts a similar system at Chelsea, Palestra’s pace, dribbling and creativity could allow him to make a significant impact in the final third.
STARTING FIXTURES
Chelsea’s opening fixtures will be another key consideration for FPL managers.
They aren’t the easiest on paper. According to the Fantasy Football Scout Fixture Ticker, the Blues rank among the bottom five teams for fixture difficulty. Four of their opening opponents finished above them in the Premier League last season.
Still, there’s only Arsenal who you would say are a formidable foe in the opening six.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Palestra may be young, but he has already demonstrated his durability and ability to handle regular first-team football. His attacking threat, combined with Chelsea’s clean-sheet potential, could make him an appealing FPL option with multiple routes to points.
Alonso’s willingness to use him on both sides, in whatever system, also bodes well.
In pre-DefCon times, he’ll have been high up the watchlist. As it is, however, he’s competing against centre-halves who provide more reliable routes to points.
£5.5m is a little steep, too. For the same price, Nathan Collins (£5.5m) delivered 30 DefCon points last season. Given Palesta’s negligible DefCon potential (he averaged just 3.50 per 90 minutes last season!), the Italian would be looking at something like two goals and six assists just to break even. And that’s assuming Collins doesn’t pop up with a goal/assist, which he invariably does.
We’ll be on a watching brief for now, then. If he’s the second coming of Marcos Alonso, he could be interesting. Anything less, and he’s hard to make a case for.
