Liam Rosenior’s honeymoon period is well and truly over following Chelsea’s defeat to Newcastle United on Saturday.
Rosenior’s men were beaten 1-0 at Stamford Bridge, which follows their 5-2 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
There was controversy during the game, as referee Paul Tierney gatecrashed Chelsea’s halfway-line huddle before kick-off.
The pressure is building on Liam Rosenior 😬
Where does he go from here?
Liam Rosenior breaks awful stats after Chelsea loss to Newcastle
Photo by Chris Lee – Chelsea FC/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Chelsea wanted to ‘respect’ the ball
Chelsea have received criticism for their latest huddle on the halfway line, and they are only likely to receive more after Rosenior’s comments.
When asked about the huddle and Tierney getting caught inside of it, the Chelsea manager told Craig Hope and other reporters: “My players made a decision that they wanted to be around the ball, to respect the ball.”
It is quite difficult to understand what exactly Rosenior meant by respecting the ball. All in all, it has probably been the strangest statement made by any manager, footballer, director or owner this season.
What is he talking about? 😵💫
Liam Rosenior on Chelsea team huddle
Credit: Andrew Kearns – CameraSport/Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
What it has done, though, is take attention away from Chelsea’s dip in form. Again, they have now lost back-to-back games against Newcastle and PSG.
Before those two matches, they did beat Wrexham in the FA Cup and Aston Villa in the Premier League. However, that was after a defeat to Arsenal and draw with Burnley.
Rosenior got off to a very good start as Chelsea manager, but things have taken a turn for the worse lately.
Trevoh Chalobah has discussed fatigue and thinks that is becoming an issue. Chelsea have played a lot of football since last summer after participating in the Club World Cup.
Whatever the case, this could still end up being a successful season for them. The Blues can still finish in the top five and have a great chance of winning the FA Cup.
They play Port Vale in the quarter-finals of the competition. Everyone will be expecting them to beat the League One side and make it to Wembley for the semis.
Questions will be asked of Rosenior, though, especially after his bizarre comments about Chelsea’s huddle on the halfway line.
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