Rosenior, born down the road in Wandsworth, becomes Chelsea's second-ever Black head coach, following in the footsteps of the great Ruud Gullit. At a time when so many Black coaches, let alone Black British coaches, are struggling to be considered for the game's elite jobs, it's a triumph that Rosenior has made it here.
Chelsea as a club have a long and complicated history with racism dating back decades. In more recent times, they have actively sought to make amends and clean up an image that once tarnished them. In 2023, they commissioned a documentary called 'Blue Is The Colour', diving into how fans from different backgrounds see the issue.
The modern history of Chelsea has been written by plenty of Black players. Xaymaca Awoyungbo, the brains behind the documentary, told The Athletic: "I've definitely felt welcome (at Chelsea). The experiences of the people in the documentary are real but, like one of the fans at the end of it says, we had players like (Didier) Drogba, (Michael) Essien, Mikel (John Obi) who showed a different image of Chelsea. I never felt like, 'Do I belong here?'. It was more the history that made me feel unsure. Personally, going to games was never a problem (in that sense)."
Paul Canoville was Chelsea's first-ever Black player during the 1980s, and though he received racist abuse at the time, he has dedicated a large chunk of his life to his namesake foundation and is seen as a key voice in the club's battle against discrimination. Canoville told the Daily Telegraph: "What really strikes me about Liam is he grew up and played not far from here (Chelsea), he knows this community. His dad Leroy has an MBE for his work tackling discrimination in sport. That's exactly what we do at The Paul Canoville Foundation, working with young people every day. There's a real alignment there, no?
"When kids see someone like Liam managing their club, someone who looks like them, who's from their ends, who comes from a family that fights for what's right... that's powerful, man. That's hope. That's showing them the path is there."