Liam Rosenior got off to a winning start as Chelsea head coach and we have looked in depth at how he achieved that with a 5-1 victory over Charlton Athletic.
Both our 2025/26 FA Cup campaign and Rosenior’s time in the Blues dugout began with a bang, as we put five goals past Charlton at The Valley in the third round. Surprisingly, given the success some of his predecessors have enjoyed over the years, that makes him the first Chelsea head coach to win his first game in charge since Antonio Conte a decade ago.
Here is how he did it…
Controlling from the start
The opening goal took a while to arrive, but there was no doubting which team had the upper hand right from the kick-off at The Valley, as the Blues stamped our authority on the game from the very start.
That is underlined by the fact that after 15 minutes of play, we had enjoyed an impressive 80 per cent of the possession, and we barely eased that stranglehold on the game as it went on.
The midfield duo of Moises Caicedo and Andrey Santos were key to that control. Caicedo’s 128 passes and Santos’ 109 were comfortably the highest of any players – between them they managed 88 more than every outfield player in Charlton’s starting XI combined – and their three successful tackles each were also the joint highest in the game.
It also showed the versatility in the midfield, as on this occasion Caicedo took on an advanced role – his 27 passes completed in the attacking third and four chances created were both the second-highest – while Santos showed his defensive prowess with a joint-best six ball recoveries.
Meanwhile, the dominance of the team’s performance was clear at the final whistle, and not only in the scoreline, with an impressive 30 attempted shots and 756 passes, while our 16 shots on target is the most we have managed away from home in any competition in four years.
Hats off to Hato
Jorrel Hato also played a crucial role in Chelsea taking control of the game early on. At that 15 minute mark when we were dominating possession, his four duels won was twice the number any other player had managed to that point.
He also opened the scoring with a brilliant strike at a crucial time, deep into first-half stoppages. That made Hato the first Dutchman to score for the Blues in the FA Cup since Arjen Robben in 2006, and, at 19 years and 309 days, the youngest player of any nationality to do so since Callum Hudson-Odoi in 2020.
Operating as an inverted full-back, combining defensive responsibilities off the ball with adding to the attack in possession, the teenager impressed at both ends of the pitch. His three defensive blocks was the most by a Chelsea player, and two shots on target and two successful dribbles both the third-best of any player on the pitch.
Forward thinking
With a series of important games across four competitions in quick succession to come, Rosenior made eight changes to the team for this FA Cup tie, and was quick to praise the performances of those who came into the side.
Among those to earn his praise and underline the strength in depth our head coach has at his disposal were the front three of Marc Guiu, Jamie Gittens and Alejandro Garnacho.
Wingers Gittens (four) and Garnacho (three) were joint-first and second for shots - while their two crosses each was the joint-highest for Chelsea, excluding set-pieces. Gittens in particular provided arguably Chelsea’s biggest threat of the first half and ended with the joint-highest successful dribbles, but also contributed to our press, with only Santos managing more than his five ball recoveries for the Blues.
But of our front three, Guiu is the one who got his name on the score sheet, showing a predator’s instincts to turn in a rebound for our second at The Valley, having already teed up Hato’s opener with a cleverly cushioned header into danger.
He had to be patient as the three Charlton centre-backs focused on cutting the supply line to our lone striker during a frustrating first half for Guiu, but on the occasions when we did manage to bring him into the game, he made them count.
Guiu now has nine goal involvements in his last nine starts for Chelsea across all competitions, with eight goals and one assist. This was the first time he had managed both in the same game for the Blues.
Finish with a flourish
As well as a dominant start, we ended the game strongly at The Valley. As Charlton’s resilient efforts to defend as a group in the first half began to take its toll on their energy levels later in the game, the substitutes introduced by Rosenior took full advantage.
Two of our five goals arrived in second-half stoppage time and were scored by players who had come off the bench – Enzo Fernandez and Pedro Neto – who along with Estevao Willian made a big impact despite their limited playing time.
Fernandez’s five chances created was the most of any player, while he and Estevao tied for shots on target with three each, making the most of their time on the pitch and again highlighting the strength in depth Rosenior will be able to call upon in the busy weeks ahead.