Liam Rosenior might be starting to remind fans of Graham Potter by now. To be fair, he is a lot better speaker than the former Chelsea manager. Unfortunately, the results on the pitch are headed in the same direction though. In fact, there seems to be a worrying trend that is being repeated here.
Just like Potter, Rosenior actually enjoyed a very good start at Chelsea. For a little bit, it looked like the club had made the right decision by changing managers. But unfortunately, the house of cards has come down already.
The 3-0 defeat against Everton, away at the Hill Dickinson Stadium, was Chelsea’s fourth on the trot. It was also the third consecutive game in which they failed to score.
It would be an understatement to say that things are looking bleak for Rosenior. I fully expect him to be given until the end of the season. Especially after the briefing that came out recently, suggesting that the board fully trusted him despite the results. Once again, that had been the case with Potter for a long time as well. Until the owners realised things could not continue on. We might reach that point with the current manager very soon, most probably at the end of the season.
Rosenior blames ‘switching off’ for Chelsea’s struggles
According to the Express, while speaking after Chelsea’s defeat at the hands of Everton, Rosenior said:
“The first goal seems quite similar to the one [vs Newcastle], but when you watch the goal back, it’s not a tactical thing. We didn’t go man for man today. We played 4-4-2. I thought our shape was actually very good. We controlled their possession. They didn’t expect it.
“They ended up kicking the ball back to us a lot of the time, and we gained control of the game. And then it’s a moment. It’s a moment of switching off. I want to protect my players always. I always will. And I take responsibility for that lapse in concentration, but that’s what it is. And that’s happened too many times in my time recently for me not to tell the truth as it is.”
That is a fair point. Chelsea do have their issues with switching off. That has been the case for a long time. Long before Rosenior was ever the manager.
That being said, that does not explain a lot of problems that Chelsea have at the moment. Switching off has not stopped them from scoring in three-straight games. In fact, they rarely looked likely to score against Everton, expect for when Jordan Pickford brilliantly saved Enzo Ferandez’s effort in the first half.
Chelsea need a top manager and Rosenior has never been the answer
Rosenior might say that he wants to protect his players and wants to take the blame. But, of course, everybody knows that it is not the fault of a manager if his team switches off. So, that feels like a measured comment from the Englishman. And to many, it will feel like an excuse.
When Rosenior had arrived, he had spoken like a winner. He had talked about how he wanted to win immediately. That is what had won a section of the fanbase over quickly.
But now that things are not going his way, Rosenior is not acting like a winner. At the end of the days, wins are what managers are measured by at Chelsea, no matter how much you talk about ‘projects’ and ‘processes’.
Rosenior’s exit already feels inevitable. It might be a matter of when and not if. He was never cut out for the job. The next time Chelsea appoint a manager, fans will be hoping that BlueCo finally go for a proven winner instead of sticking to their badly failing project.
