Chelsea ended cooperation with Enzo Maresca on New Year’s Day and are intensively working on the arrival of a new coach. Calum McFarlane (40) will temporarily lead the team against Manchester City on Sunday, but another, permanent coach should soon be on the bench. Everything indicates that it will be Liam Rosenior (41) from the subsidiary Strasbourg, which the coach himself commented on after a recent match in Ligue 1.
“I will talk about the game with Nice because that is my job,” Rosenior tried to steer clear of the issue at a press conference after the 1-1 draw. Although the club has a record of 3-2-0 in the last five matches across competitions, it is going through a worse period in Ligue 1 alone. The last time the Alsatians succeeded here was at the beginning of November.
Nevertheless, the Englishman did not avoid questions about the potential post of Chelsea coach. “There is a lot of hype and speculation around it, but if you get involved as a coach, you will fail. My job is here, I love this club,” he maintained professionalism.
???? BREAKING: Liam Rosenior seems to give a farewell to Strasbourg :
“It’s a very beautiful city, with very beautiful people, a great club. I liked everything. The players were amazing. I really want the best for this club. I don’t know if this is my last game. In life we don’t… pic.twitter.com/C9oP6Uo0Kq
— Pys (@CFCPys) January 3, 2026
“I didn’t talk about it with the players. It’s not necessary, they are connected and I just made a few jokes about it. But we are focused on our work. The speculation was already there,” Rosenior continued.
He has been with the French team since the summer of 2024 and coached 63 games with an average of 1.75 points per game. “I don’t want to guarantee how long I’ll be here, but I’m enjoying it here every day. I intend to continue as long as I’m here. I love this club, but I can’t guarantee anything.” admitted the pilot.
He previously worked at Hull City, where he knows Blues forward Liam Delap. He also managed Derby briefly. The Londoners intend to bring in a coach who presents himself in a similar style to Maresca with an emphasis on possession. It won’t be a big name, the sporting directors have the last word at the club and the new manager, ideally young and ambitious, has to respect that.
Leading contender for the Chelsea job, here are Liam Rosenior’s stats as Strasbourg manager in all competitions ???? pic.twitter.com/dKLD4WV7DI
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) January 2, 2026
“I want to do my job here, it’s simple. The reality today is that I am the coach of Strasbourg and I am focused on my position,” Rosenior continued.
Inquiring journalists did not forget the connection between the two clubs, which fall under the BlueCo company. “There are exchanges because we are part of the same group,” the coach is aware.
After the summer transfer of Emanuel Emegha to Chelsea, 12 players will rotate between the two teams, others were directly bought for the Alsace with the prospect of a future departure to London. Now it could also be the coach.
Liam Rosenior’s Strasbourg ????
Bait the press, move backwards to go forwards — take the space
Strasbourg are averaging the most touches in the defensive third per 90 in Europe’s top five leagues this season with 255.3 ????pic.twitter.com/abTPkufkKD
— Connor Holden (@ConnorHolden00) March 26, 2025
Strasbourg under Rosenior regularly starts with the youngest starting line-up in the TOP five European competitions, which is in line with the ambitions of the owners. The Ligue 1 seventh-team captain is expected to replace interim coach Calum McFarlane.
He has so far coached the youth teams of Blues, Southampton and Manchester City – he will enjoy his debut on the bench in adult football against the Citizens.
