Chelsea have drawn up a shortlist of possible managerial candidates to replace Liam Rosenior as the club’s hierarchy consider calling time on his disastrous reign, The i Paper understands.
Sources say the club are “considering their options” after a run of five straight Premier League defeats without scoring a goal, with the possibility of an interim head coach leading the team for the rest of the season.
That would represent a major change from previous backing for Rosenior but the situation is viewed by some as untenable after Chelsea conceded ground in the race for the Champions League.
Missing out on a return to Europe’s top tier competition could cost the club as much as £90m.
The players were on a scheduled day off on Wednesday but the club’s leadership were locked in talks about their future direction.
Rosenior was viewed by BlueCo executives as the obvious choice after Enzo Maresca’s departure given his fine work at Strasbourg, but despite the club reaching the FA Cup semi-finals, they are worse off in the Premier League and could miss out on Europe entirely.
Rosenior was only appointed in January but fans turned on him during Tuesday’s dismal 3-0 defeat at Brighton, during which he was barracked by large sections of the visiting support, who also called out the club’s ownership.
Ominously for Rosenior, co-owner Behdad Eghbali was in attendance at the Amex Stadium.
It has now emerged that they are looking into alternatives to Rosenior, with uncertainty over whether he will be in charge for this weekend’s FA Cup semi-final against Leeds United.
Quite where Chelsea go next is unclear. The club’s former defender Filipe Luis was interviewed to replace Rosenior at Strasbourg and has admirers at Stamford Bridge but it feels inconceivable that they would go with another inexperienced coach to lead a project in danger of veering off the rails.
Former player Cesc Fabregas, who has Como in the European places in only his second season as manager, is an obvious choice but there are other options to take over permanently in the summer, with increasing uncertainty over Marco Silva’s future at Fulham.
Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola will also be a free agent but some who work in the Premier League believe the way the club operates – with influential sporting directors and a hands on ownership – will put off truly elite managers from taking the role.
Read more
- Kat Lucas: The unstoppable rise of Chelsea’s ‘little Messi’
- Daniel Storey: Liam Rosenior epitomises everything wrong with Chelsea
Rosenior was meant to be the compromise; a highly promising coach who bought into the overall strategy.
However, it has unravelled at frightening pace and his criticism of the players after Tuesday’s loss makes it difficult to see how he continues from here.
Previously the club had publicly backed Rosenior with the intention of reviewing his position at the end of the season. But news of the meeting of senior figures suggests Rosenior is far from safe.
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