Chelsea sack manager Rosenior after 0-3 defeat to Brighton

Liam Rosenior. Pic/AFP

Liam Rosenior has been sacked as Chelsea manager following a run of five successive Premier League defeats, the club announced on Wednesday. The 41-year-old had been in charge for just over three months after being lured away from Strasbourg, the French club which is affiliated to Chelsea's American owners. Chelsea's 3-0 defeat at the hands of Brighton on Tuesday proved the last straw. It was the first time Chelsea have lost five consecutive league games without scoring a single goal since 1912, a run which has left them seven points adrift of the Champions League places.

"Chelsea Football Club has today parted company with Head Coach Liam Rosenior," read a club statement. "Liam has always conducted himself with the highest integrity and professionalism following his appointment midway through the season. "This has not been a decision the Club has taken lightly, however recent results and performances have fallen below the necessary standards with still so much more to play for this season," the statement added. Calum McFarlane, who was Rosenior's assistant, will be in charge in a caretaker capacity, the club added, with his first match the FA Cup semi-final against Leeds United on Sunday.

The club said it would "undertake a process of self-reflection to make the right long-term appointment." Rosenior was a surprise choice in January to replace Italian coach Enzo Maresca, who was considered to be popular with the Chelsea players but had fallen out with the owners. But after promising early signs, Chelsea were knocked out of the League Cup and were then eliminated from the Champions League by Paris Saint-Germain, 8-2 on aggregate, in March. Cracks in the relationship between the squad and coach have been in evidence for weeks.

The decision to part company with Maresca in January was publicly questioned by Enzo Fernandez and Marc Cucurella. Fernandez was then dropped for two games for suggesting he would be open to a summer move to Real Madrid and was forced to apologise. Rosenior's frustration was clear after the defeat to Brighton. "I have defended the players at times when it was the correct thing but I can't defend that performance. It doesn't represent this football club, it doesn't represent anything I ask from the group and that has to change," the Englishman said, adding: "I feel numb I'm so angry." Chelsea won the World Club Cup last year and the UEFA Conference League in 2024, but have little else to show for around one billion pounds ($1.35 billion) of spending on players since US investor Todd Boehly took over following Roman Abramovich's trophy-laden ownership of the club.

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