There can be very few complaints from Chelsea fans over the start to life Liam Rosenior has made since taking over the club last month.
The Blues have won six of their first seven games under Rosenior, including the historic 3-2 comeback win against West Ham at the weekend.
Rosenior was praised for his tactical adjustments during that game, with it clear his Chelsea players were being dominated by their relegation-threatened opponents.
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This was despite the Englishman admitting that tactics ‘went out in the window’ in the final moments, relying on his players’ quality and desire.
Chelsea Head Coach Liam Rosenior reacts after during the Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Chelsea
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Jamie Carragher highlights common Liam Rosenior problem at Chelsea
Despite the strong record, it is fair to say not every performance has been strong since the start. The Blues have come from behind on a number of occasions.
Jamie Carragher analysed the boss’ tactics for Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, and explained why Rosenior’s unique take on things is actually hurting the Blues.
He said: “3-2-5 in possession, so you see the back three, the midfield pivot, and a front five. Now, this is nothing different to what Maresca did, we’ve seen Michael Carrick do it for Manchester United. Lots of teams build up like this. But what’s really interesting is the position of the full-backs in this setup.
“You’ve got Gusto at right-back, who’s part of the back three in the build up, and you’ve got your left-back, Hato, who comes and joins Caicedo as one of the double pivots.
“As we’ve highlighted with Liam Rosenior’s Chelsea, they always want to go through the middle. The ball comes central to Caicedo, they lose it there. This is 30 seconds into the game. Something that we saw a lot against Brentford, this happened all through the first half against West Ham.”
Jamie Carragher poses during Athletic Club v Girona FC - LaLiga EA Sports
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Liam Rosenior impressing his rivals already
Chelsea’s only loss since Rosenior occurred against Arsenal in the EFL Cup, although they have a chance to address that at the Emirates tonight.
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Liam Rosenior gives Chelsea update on Estevao Willian
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While the Blues are up against it in their attempts to get to the final, it seems the new Chelsea boss has already made an impression on his rival manager.
Mikel Arteta described Rosenior as ‘incredible’ when speaking before this game, knowing that he will certainly face a challenge despite their 3-2 aggregate lead.
In team news for the Blues, it looks as if Estevao Willian is going to still be unavailable due to personal reasons.
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