Alonso on ownership, Joao Pedro and Brentford

Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso has been speaking to the media before Friday's Premier League game against Brentford at Gtech Community Stadium (kick-off 20:00 BST). Here are the key lines from his news conference: On the change in ownership announced on Wednesday, Alonso said: "I think it is an important day for the club. Thanks to the former owners for what they have done. I was not here but I know that they played an important role. I have a very good relationship with Behdad [Eghbali]; he was the one who came to Madrid to explain the project to convince me and we are working well together." On his confidence in Chelsea to compete for trophies: "That is why we are here. To work to get into that position, knowing that the competition that we have but for sure the ambition of the club, the potential of the club, the dimensions of the players, of where we are. We know where we want to be. We know everything takes time but the ambition for that is very clear." On team news: "In terms of injuries, we are having the last training session tomorrow so no one is ruled out for us for Friday so I prefer to be cautious and we will be waiting until tomorrow to make the final decision on every player." When asked about Brazil forward Joao Pedro, Alonso did not confirm an injury, but said it could be a "possibility" that he plays for Chelsea on Friday but not the international team. Ecuador midfielder Moises Caicedo is "getting closer" to fitness. The club will see captain Reece James' development before deciding if either player will be involved in Friday's game. Alonso said he does not know if Caicedo is in the Ecuador squad and he is focused on when the midfielder plays for Chelsea: "It is international duties, sometimes you can't control them so we will see what happens." He said when you are in the Premier League "you realise how tough it is each game, how tough it is to win" and added: "You need to give your best level because you get punished when you are not. We have experienced that." On Brentford: "They do [set pieces, long throws and fast transitions] very well but not just that. They do other things, not just the transition, not just the set-pieces. I think it is a team, a club that has developed the project and the game very well. They are very complete in many aspects, with or without the ball. And playing there, you see the numbers, they have great strength playing at home so it is going to be a big challenge. I saw the game from last year, you learn everything and it is going to be a big test for us." Follow all of Thursday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news Got a question about Chelsea? Get in touch here and we'll seek answers from our experts [BBC]