Xabi Alonso explained his decision to leave Emiliano Martinez out of his squad in Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat to Sunderland on Sunday.

In his pre-match press conference, Alonso said he wanted to wait until matchday to decide whether Martinez would make the cut for the trip to Sunderland. The goalkeeper had returned to training days earlier and even had a custom-fitted face mask to aid his possible return.

In the end, the veteran goalkeeper did not make the team sheet. His understudy, Mike Penders, started in goal, while Teddy Sharman-Lowe was the backup goalkeeper on the bench.

Alonso admitted that he decided not to have Martinez back on the team early because of the risks involved.

“He has made a great effort to be available, but probably it was too rash, too risky (to be selected,” the Chelsea boss said about Martinez’s absence.

“So he will use one more week, ten days, to keep on training and get used to the mask. I’m sure after the break he will be available.”

Would Chelsea have had a bigger chance of getting at least a draw had Martinez played, given his good record in stopping penalties? Maybe, but he would have also struggled to deal with Sunderland’s long balls.

Poor goalkeeping was not why Chelsea lost that game.

The fact that the team could not score, despite having relied heavily on their attack to win games under Alonso, is a major concern. Joao Pedro’s thigh injury absence played a big part, of course, but Chelsea still had Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers, Pedro Neto, and other attacking options from the bench.

It was a second consecutive loss during the weekend leading up to the international break, which could only hurt the team’s morale. While the Blues still sit fifth in the Premier League table, they are also just three points ahead of Aston Villa in 10th.

On a more positive note, Martinez is expected to return after the two-week international break, which is shorter than the last one. The 34-year-old, alongside Valentin Barco and Aaron Anselmino, will fly to Argentina for the upcoming friendlies against Uruguay and Costa Rica.

Depending on his fitness, Martinez could use the next two weeks to rest or get some minutes under his belt before his return to action with Chelsea, likely when the club host Leeds United at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, November 21.

A few other players on Chelsea’s injury list will also hope to be back in time for this match. This includes Anselmino, Josh Acheampong, and Jorrel Hato. Joao Pedro also belongs in the category, and his potential return would arguably be the biggest boost the team could hope for, given the striker’s goalscoring performance this season.