Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso jokingly reminded everyone that he is not solely responsible for the team’s 22-game Premier League run without a clean sheet that ended in Saturday’s win over Everton.

The Blues had to wait nine months and 22 matches to earn another Premier League clean sheet in their 2-0 win over Everton at the weekend. Before that, Chelsea last kept a league clean sheet in a 2-0 win over Brentford at Stamford Bridge back in January.

This was obviously a priority issue for Alonso to solve at Chelsea, who still conceded the second-most goals (13) in the top half of the league table so far this season.

Alonso was understandably pleased with the team’s defensive display at Hill Dickinson Stadium. However, he also clarified that he was not to blame for the poor defensive record, at least not completely.

“I take my part just for the (last) seven games, not for the rest,” the Chelsea boss told Stadium Astro, laughing, when asked about the record.

“But for sure, the first goal was to win, and we did it. After (that), to get the clean sheet to have the feeling that we are strong enough not to concede.

“Even in the first half, there were moments when Everton were pushing, but the team looked mature, not losing composure.”

Obviously, Liam Rosenior was in charge of 16 of the 22 games in the team's clean-sheet-less run. Alonso simply inherited the defensive problems in the summer.

The Spaniard also insinuated that the international break gave him and his squad time to tighten up the defence.

“It’s a process,” he explained. “You make mistakes, you analyse them, you learn from them, you work on them, and for sure, we’ve seen an improvement, especially after the international break against Bournemouth, and today (Saturday), we looked solid.”

Chelsea will have a week to prepare for Saturday’s London derby against Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge.

The Spurs’ disastrous goalscoring record, having scored just three goals from their first six games, will certainly raise Chelsea’s confidence in targeting back-to-back clean sheets. 

The north London club will also host Frank Lampard’s Coventry City on Monday night, which means they will have less time to prepare for the derby.

That said, Chelsea will likely be without their first-choice goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez this weekend. The club announced that the Argentina international fractured his jaw after a collision that led to him being stretchered off during the Everton win.

Martinez underwent successful surgery, but as it stands, it remains unclear how long the injury will keep him sidelined.

Mike Penders, who earned his Premier League debut after replacing Martinez in the second half, is widely recognised as one of the best young goalkeepers in Europe. Still, he is relatively inexperienced at the elite level, which is why he is behind Martinez in the pecking order in the first place.

It will be up to the outfield players, especially the back three, to help Penders defend Chelsea’s goal in what is expected to be his full Premier League debut on Saturday.

Levi Colwill, Maxence Lacroix, and Josh Acheampong have started in Chelsea’s back three in the last two games and are likely to keep their spots in the line-up against Spurs.