Tag: Liam Rosenior

Liam Rosenior has admitted he faces a challenge to win over Chelsea fans as head coach but insisted the club’s potential is “limitless” and vowed: “I’m not arrogant, I’m very good at what I do.”

The 41-year-old will take charge of his first game in today’s FA Cup third round trip to Charlton Athletic after signing a six-year contract to replace Enzo Maresca.

Following Maresca’s departure, Chelsea supporters chanted against the club’s owner BlueCo during Wednesday’s 2-1 defeat at Fulham and fans are planning a formal protest before their next Premier League game, against Brentford on Jan. 17.

Rosenior is the fifth permanent head coach since BlueCo took charge of the club in 2022 and he told media on Friday: “I think at a club of this stature, the fans want success and they have every right to want success now.

“The club is ingrained in the history of winning trophies, especially recent history. Winning titles, winning the Champions League and the fans should have those demands and those standards.

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“My job, to win over the fans, I have to win games of football. To win over the fans, they need to see a team that represents them. I know this area well, I was born not far up the road [in Wandsworth]. It’s about hard work, determination and spirit. I remember playing at Stamford Bridge when Jose Mourinho’s team were at their very best and it was so difficult physically.

“We’re trying to build things here in a different way. I’m very, very confident that in time we will show people why we have done it in this way. My job is to move it forward and get to a place where teams really fear coming to Stamford Bridge.”

Rosenior managed Derby County on an interim basis before two years at Hull City and an 18-month stint at another BlueCo-owned club, Ligue 1 side Strasbourg.

Reflecting on his step up to a top Premier League club, he said: “You don’t limit your ambitions. I’m not arrogant, I’m good at what I do. In every job I’ve worked, whether it was as an interim, as an assistant, a head coach or a manager or whatever you want to call it, relative to the group I’ve worked with, I’ve been successful.

Liam Rosenior has been confirmed as Chelsea’s new head coach on a six-and-a-half-year deal, saying the opportunity to succeed Enzo Maresca at Stamford Bridge was too good to turn down.

The 41-year-old Strasbourg boss told a press conference earlier in the day at the Ligue 1 club that he had “verbally agreed” on the move.

Chelsea officially announced that Rosenior, who will take charge of his first match in the FA Cup at the weekend, had signed a deal until 2032.

 “I am extremely humbled and honoured to be appointed head coach of Chelsea Football Club,” he said in a statement on the Premier League team’s website. “This is a club with a unique spirit and a proud history of winning trophies.

 “My job is to protect that identity and create a team that reflects these values in every game we play as we continue winning trophies.”

Rosenior has just three years’ experience as a manager, with Hull City and French club Strasbourg, and has never coached in the Premier League.

But he had been widely touted as the frontrunner to succeed Maresca since the Italian left Chelsea last week.

Strasbourg are part of the Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital-owned BlueCo multi-club ownership group that also controls Chelsea.

Rosenior is Chelsea’s fourth permanent managerial appointment since BlueCo took control of the club previously owned by Roman Abramovich in 2022.

The club said the Englishman had shown “he can build teams with a clear way of playing while setting the highest standards with players on and off the pitch”.

“While there will continue to be a focus on player development, the club’s expectations and ambitions remain high,” Chelsea added.

Rosenior said he had wanted to announce the news himself in Strasbourg because of his deep feelings for the French club.

The former defender, whose father, Leroy Rosenior, was also a player and a manager, told reporters the chance to manage Chelsea was “an opportunity I cannot turn down”.

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 “I’m so excited about the future. I cannot lie. My whole life I’ve worked to be a coach,” he said. “To be presented with this opportunity to manage a world-class football club is something I’ve always dreamed of.

 “With that is a mixed emotion of sadness of what I’m leaving behind.”

Chelsea interim manager Calum McFarlane told reporters that he would remain in charge for Wednesday’s Premier League match against Fulham.

McFarlane said he had spoken briefly to the club’s new boss.

 “He’s obviously really excited about taking the role,” he said. “It’s a brief conversation, so my understanding is he’s going to be at Cobham (Chelsea’s training ground) later on today.”

Rosenior played in the Premier League and the second-tier Championship in England. His clubs included Fulham, Reading and Hull.

He had a variety of coaching roles at Derby, which included 12 matches as caretaker manager at the start of the 2022⁄23 season.

Later in 2022 Rosenior took over as manager of Championship team Hull.

He was sacked after 18 months and in July 2024 was appointed by Strasbourg, who he guided to seventh place in Ligue 1 last season.

McFarlane said Rosenior’s teams played “aggressive, front-foot football” and that his appointment would inspire English managers.

Since the formation of the Premier League in 1992, not a single English manager has won the title.

“I’m sure all young English coaches from an academy background will be in some way, regardless of who you support, rooting for Liam,” said McFarlane.

“So it is really inspirational for young academy English coaches.”

Maresca left Chelsea abruptly on New Year’s Day following a deterioration in his relationship with club bosses, just months after winning the UEFA Conference League and Club World Cup.

Chelsea are fifth in the Premier League, 17 points behind Arsenal, with just one win in their past eight league games.

Strasbourg manager Liam Rosenior is the leading contender for the Chelsea job vacated by Enzo Maresca.

Former Leicester boss Maresca, 45, left his role as Chelsea head coach on Thursday amid internal tensions with the club’s hierarchy and ownership.

The process to replace the Italian is under way, and it is understood Englishman Rosenior is the frontrunner, though sources have stressed other candidates are also under consideration.

Rosenior’s current employers are owned by investment vehicle BlueCo – the consortium set up to purchase Chelsea in 2022.

The 41-year-old, who previously managed Hull, has significant backing internally at Chelsea and it is understood candidates to replace him at Strasbourg are being considered because of his possible departure.

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Porto’s Francesco Farioli has also been mooted as a potential contender.

Before appointing Maresca in 2024, Chelsea interviewed Marseille manager Roberto de Zerbi, Ipswich counterpart Kieran McKenna, and Thomas Frank, who was then at Brentford but has since moved to Tottenham.

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola and Fulham’s Marco Silva have also been linked with the role in the past, though it is unclear if they are now contenders.

The club will not change their style of play, so it is highly unlikely they would move for Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner.

It is not yet clear who will lead the side for Sunday’s match against Manchester City, though under-21s head coach Calum McFarlane will take on media duties for a news conference to preview the game on Friday.

A social media post from goalkeeper Robert Sanchez indicated that Maresca’s backroom team have also departed the club.