Liam Rosenior's time at Chelsea is quickly turning sour as the young English manager has suffered four successive defeats against Paris Saint-Germain (x2), Newcastle and Everton.
The 3-0 loss at the Hill Dickinson Stadium was the final straw for some supporters, despite the 41-year-old only being appointed in January. A brace from Beto and an Iliman Ndiaye stunner saw Blues supporters exit the away end early, making a clear point to the manager and his players.
It came after a heavy 8-2 aggregate loss against PSG in the Champions League Round of 16. Now, Chelsea only have the FA Cup left if they are to lift silverware this term, while they remain behind in the race for a top-five finish in the league.
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Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior looks on during the loss to Everton
Rosenior wasn't a planned appointment at Stamford Bridge, according to a report by TEAMtalk. Enzo Maresca's public fallout with the higher-ups at the club led to a mid-season change.
The former Hull City and Strasbourg manager started well in west London, winning his first four matches in charge. However, dropped points at home against Burnley and Leeds United saw cracks start to form shortly after.
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He's now winless in four matches, having conceded 11 goals in heavy defeats against PSG and Everton. Despite this poor run of form and the Stamford Bridge faithful already turning on Rosenior, the Chelsea board are expected to be patient due to the unexpected change they had to make halfway through the campaign.
Fabrizio Romano took to his YouTube channel after the heavy defeat at Everton to provide an update (per Metro). As he told GiveMeSport after the Champions League exit, Chelsea still have confidence in Rosenior and will continue to back him.
"It feels like a complicated situation but again, all the questions I’m getting now on Liam Rosenior I’m still answering now after what I told you already in recent days after the Paris Saint-Germain game… at the moment, I don’t have any message coming from the Chelsea side about any imminent change or any strong decision."
"At the same time, Chelsea want to be in the Champions League next season. It’s still a long run. Let’s see how these final two months of the season will go," Romano added. He did, however, confirm 'full confidence' in the under-fire boss: "So Rosenior is maintaining the full confidence and, at the moment, that’s the situation with the club."
Rosenior Urges Chelsea Supporters to See 'Bigger Picture'
Chelsea Corner Flag
Following the disappointing Premier League defeat on Saturday night, Rosenior addressed the unrest within the fan base and acknowledged that supporters aren't happy. "The supporters pay their money, they love this club, and they’ve come a long way," he said.
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Rosenior continued: "It’s a disappointing time at the moment in terms of the way we lost in the Champions League and the way we’ve lost the last two Premier League games." He then implored fans to 'look at the bigger picture', pointing out Chelsea could still qualify for Europe's elite competition:
"It hurts, regardless of your position, losing games of football. But in terms of moving forward and having this time [during the international break], it's to look at the bigger picture.
"We’re one point away from the Champions League positions, so we need to keep working in this way, keep giving the players as much confidence as possible, and hopefully this break has come at a really good moment."