Liam Rosenior is coming in for a lot of criticism right now following Chelsea’s elimination from the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Chelsea were beaten 3-0 by Paris Saint-Germain at Stamford Bridge, losing both legs of the last 16 tie 8-2 on aggregate.
However, Rosenior does not deserve all the blame, neither do Mamadou Sarr nor Filip Jorgensen despite their costly errors across both games.
Sarr struggled within minutes…
FBL-EUR-C1-CHELSEA-PSG
Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP via Getty Images
Did Rosenior make a mistake? Handing out a first Champions League start in THIS scenario…
Chelsea’s sporting directors deserve the blame for Champions League exit
The individuals who really need to be held to account for Chelsea’s performance in the Champions League this season are Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, the club’s two main sporting directors.
They have given Rosenior a bad hand, assembling a squad that is simply not ready to compete against Europe’s elite.
Sarr and Jorgensen will continue to be criticised for their roles in Chelsea’s Champions League elimination. But why is a second-choice goalkeeper and 20-year-old centre-back starting against arguably the best team in the world on the biggest stage in club football in the first place?
Rosenior is clearly not convinced by the goalkeeper options at the club, hence the switching between Jorgensen and Robert Sanchez, while Sarr is what the sporting directors offered him after failing to sign a centre-back in January or last summer.
Mamadou Sarr of Chelsea cant stop Khvicha Kvaratskhelia of Paris Saint-Germain
Photo by Ed Sykes/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
The above are just a couple of pieces of evidence that show that Stewart and Winstanley have not put together a squad capable of competing at the top.
They will argue that this is the same Chelsea team that beat PSG 3-0 in the Club World Cup final last July. But it is becoming more apparent that the victory that day was down to Enzo Maresca’s tactical masterclass.
Stewart, Winstanley and the rest of Chelsea’s recruitment team brought £285m worth of talent to Stamford Bridge in the previous summer transfer window, yet the Blues’ starting XI seems to have regressed. That is not on Rosenior, Sarr or Jorgensen.
Chelsea FC (C), poses for a photo with the UEFA Conference League trophy alongside Chelsea Director of Recruitment Joseph Shields, Chelsea Co-Sporting Director Paul Winstanley, Chelsea Director Jose Feliciano, Chelsea Director Behdad Eghbali and Chelsea Co-Sporting Director Laurence Stewart after their team's victory in the UEFA Conference League Final 2025 between Real Betis Balompie and Chelsea FC at Stadion Wroclaw on May 28, 2025 in Wroclaw, Poland.
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart should be removed before Liam Rosenior
Early signs suggest that, in true Chelsea fashion, the owners (they are a conversation for another day) will sack Rosenior.
But if anyone is to lose their job, it should be Winstanley and Stewart. Unlike Rosenior, they have had time and have much more of a say on transfers than the 41-year-old and his predecessors.
Do you think Chelsea should sack Liam Rosenior? Or are you willing to give him more time?🤔
Chelsea FC v Paris Saint-Germain FC - UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Round of 16 Second Leg
Photo by Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC via Getty Images
The reality is this is their team, not Rosenior’s. Winstanley and Stewart were in pictures and giving interviews when Chelsea were doing well in the Premier League and collecting trophies (won by Maresca, not them), but where are they now? Nowhere to be seen…
Join Our Newsletter
Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox