Jorrel Hato, a Chelsea defender, has backed new head coach Liam Rosenior and said he believes the 41-year-old can help the Blues get back to winning ways. On Thursday morning, Rosenior had his first training session at Cobham and started getting ready for his first game as a Blues coach, which will be against Charlton Athletic in the FA Cup third round on Saturday.
Hato told Chelsea’s official media that he trusts both his teammates and the new manager. He said:
“I have a lot of faith in my team-mates and in the new manager to be better and win these games. He spoke to us about the winning mentality, so we’re looking forward to getting started.”
The 19-year-old, who joined the Blues from Ajax in August 2025, also talked about how Rosenior has brought good energy to Cobham:
“Everyone is excited to work with the new coach and the new energy he brings. It has been a difficult time, changing managers and the last couple of games we didn’t win, but now with the new manager we have a fresh start for everyone.”
Hato came on as a substitute during the Fulham loss to help the defense at left-back after Marc Cucurella was sent off with a red card early in the game. Even though Chelsea only had ten players, they came back from a goal down thanks to Liam Delap’s first Premier League goal for the club. However, Fulham scored a late winner.
Meanwhile, Rosenior comes to Stamford Bridge after coaching RC Strasbourg, where he led the French club to European qualification for the first time in 19 years in his first season. On Tuesday, he signed a six-year deal to be Chelsea’s head coach. He left the Ligue 1 club to take over for Enzo Maresca.
Chelsea are four points behind the top four going into the FA Cup weekend
Chelsea are in the third round of the FA Cup this weekend. They are four points behind fourth place and two points behind fifth place in the Premier League table. Enzo Maresca left the Blues on New Year’s Day after they had only won one of their last seven league games.
The club are in fifth place in the Premier League after 20 games and are three points away from a spot in the UEFA Champions League. Rosenior will have his first chance to start building momentum again on Saturday when the Blues play Championship team Charlton Athletic in the FA Cup.
In the next few weeks, Rosenior will take over a team that are set to play in the EFL Cup semifinals. Chelsea are also in 13th place in the Champions League, with two games left in the league phase. The busy game schedule is both a problem and an opportunity for the new head coach to quickly put his plans into action across several competitions.