FOOTBALL – LIAM Rosenior was confirmed as Premier League club Chelsea’s new head coach yesterday following the departure of Italian Enzo Maresca last week.
The 41-year-old Englishman has signed a deal until 2032, becoming the fourth full-time head coach appointed since a takeover of the club led by American Todd Boehly in 2022.
“I am extremely humbled and honoured to be appointed head coach of Chelsea Football Club,” Rosenior, who leaves his post at French club Racing Strasbourg, said in a club statement.
“This is a club with a unique spirit and a proud history of winning trophies.”
London-born Rosenior, whose playing career included spells at Fulham, Hull City and Brighton and Hove Albion, took charge of Strasbourg in July 2024 after coaching spells at Derby County, where he was assistant to Wayne Rooney, and Hull in England’s second tier.
Former England forward Rooney described Rosenior as “as good a coach as I’ve ever worked with”.
While he is relatively inexperienced as a top-level coach, his reputation was enhanced after leading Strasbourg to European qualification following a seventh-placed finish in Ligue 1.
Part of that squad was Chelsea’s young Brazilian midfielder Andrey Santos, who was on loan.
“He’s a great coach. I love working with him. All the players are excited by his commitment, his vision,” Santos, who scored 10 league goals for Strasbourg last season, said in an interview about Rosenior.
Rosenior became the leading candidate to replace Maresca, thanks in large part to the fact that Strasbourg and Chelsea are part of the same multi-club ownership structure, with the French club taken over by Boehly’s consortium BlueCo in 2023.
His immediate task will be to turn around Chelsea’s form after a run of only one win in eight Premier League games although he will likely be watching from the stands at Craven Cottage today as Chelsea visit London rivals Fulham with under-21s coach Calum McFarlane taking the team.
Rosenior’s first game in charge will be Saturday’s FA Cup trip away at Charlton Athletic.
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