'He’s a machine' - Morgan Rogers hails Jordan Henderson as Chelsea continue blistering Premier League form under Xabi Alonso

Henderson may have arrived at Stamford Bridge with some questioning his age, but his recent performances have quickly silenced the doubters. The veteran midfielder enjoyed a dream home debut against Bournemouth, finding the net and providing the creative spark in a dominant 5-1 win. His teammate Rogers has been left in awe of the 36-year-old’s physical condition and footballing intelligence since his summer move to West London.

"People said he was too old and you see what he does. Everyone in the dressing room knows that he's probably still the fittest player at the club, to be honest. He's a machine. People forget about the football because they just think he's that experienced head, but don't get me wrong, the guy can still play football. He's won everything in the game. You saw his quality there and we'll see it for the rest of the season, I'm sure," said Rogers on Chelsea's official website.

Rogers also addressed the competition for set-piece duties within the squad, admitting that Henderson’s technique is hard to dispute. The veteran midfielder persuaded his younger teammates to step aside, emphatically backing up his claim with a stunning second-half free-kick that brought the crowd to its feet. "Hopefully we’ll see more goals from him. He's got the ability, super quality. That's why he's on the free-kick, because he's got that ability to score from distance, and he did it twice on Saturday," he remarked.

The young forward joked about losing his spot as the primary taker, but emphasized that team success remains the priority for this revitalised Chelsea side. "It was a work thing last week before I was there actually. They did it behind my back and then when I've got back I'm off free-kicks all of a sudden! Which I wasn't the best happy about, but as long as we score, that's the most important thing."

The Blues have developed a reputation for devastating starts this season, a trend that was evident as they dismantled the Cherries. Rogers credited Alonso for the team's aggressive mentality from the first whistle. Chelsea have managed to find the net within the opening seven minutes in five of their first six Premier League matches, a statistic that highlights the tactical focus on high-intensity football from the start of play.

"I put it down to the manager's team talks before. He gets us firing, gets us going. But we always want to start off on the front foot. It's about starting the game well and getting the lead, and that's been a lot of the games, especially at home, that we've kind of jumped on the back of scoring early goals. So it's a good trait to have and we need to keep it going," Rogers explained.

Despite the recent surge in form that has placed Chelsea just outside the top four on goal difference, the squad is remaining grounded. Alonso has been careful to manage expectations, a message that Rogers and his teammates have fully embraced as the campaign progresses. The focus remains on internal development and constant improvement on the training ground rather than fixating on the Premier League table during these early stages of the football season.

"As the manager said, and he's been saying all week, which is a good one which I'm going to use now: “We can finish bottom or we can finish first”. There's not been enough games to determine where we can finish and what we can do, and that's how we're taking it. We want to improve ourselves and look at ourselves, which we will do, but we're not looking up and not looking down. We're just looking at ourselves, at how we can improve and get better," Rogers concluded.