Liam Rosenior isn’t losing sleep over all the jokes flying around about him. If anything, Chelsea’s head coach seems to get a kick out of it—he’s happy to laugh at himself and focus on getting the last laugh on the pitch.

He’s heading into his next match at Wolves with a perfect Premier League record, but honestly, his first month at Chelsea’s been a bit of a circus. The internet’s had a field day, turning him into memes—one minute he’s Will from The Inbetweeners, the next he’s David Brent from The Office. He gets ribbed for saying “manage” means “ageing men” at Strasbourg, for trying a Lego session at Hull, and most recently, for that awkward moment when he couldn’t control the ball during the Carabao Cup semi-final against Arsenal.

Of course, that clip blew up online. Even his own player, Estevao Willian, just 18, teased him about it—asking if he actually used to play football for a living.

Honestly, people are piling on a bit, but Rosenior’s not bothered. He just shrugs it off.

“The lads played the video back for me, and we all laughed,” Rosenior said, talking about that Arsenal moment. “Estevao couldn’t believe I was a pro footballer.

You have to laugh at yourself. I love this job. Sure, I take it seriously, and I push the team hard, but life’s too short to take yourself too seriously. You’ve got to enjoy it. Right now, plenty of people here are laughing at me—and that’s fine.”

Underneath it all, Rosenior’s got real confidence. He’s not letting outside noise distract him. He’s focused on making Chelsea better.

Since he arrived, he’s made some changes. One of the most noticeable? The players now huddle right in the centre circle before kickoff. That came from Willie Isa—a former rugby league player now working with Chelsea as a sort of “cultural architect”—and from the squad leaders like Reece James, Enzo Fernandez, and Marc Cucurella.

“Willie Isa’s a great guy,” Rosenior said. “He’s from New Zealand, where team spirit is everything. He’s been talking with our leaders about new things to try. A lot of what we’re doing isn’t obvious from the outside, but that huddle in the middle is one thing people see.

For me, it’s all about mindset. If your mind’s right, everything else follows. We have to approach every game with that attitude.”

With Jamie Gittens out with a hamstring injury, Rosenior might need a lot more from Alejandro Garnacho on the left. Garnacho’s had some criticism lately, and when someone asked if the £40 million summer signing is scared to take on defenders, Rosenior jumped in to back his player.

“That’s your opinion of what you’re seeing,” he shot back, then talked about Garnacho’s last game against West Ham and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

“I saw Garna push the game forward. He got into great positions—and let’s be honest, he was up against one of the best one-v-one defenders in world football. I’ve got his back, always. He just needs some games, some rhythm. I expect him to have a strong second half of the season.”

And as for Garnacho’s potential? “The ceiling is limitless in life,” Rosenior said.

Another new face: Mamadou Sarr, who just returned from his loan at Strasbourg. He’s already trained with the squad ahead of Wolves. Sarr's coming back shows just how much influence Rosenior has when it comes to signings.

“Everyone knows how I feel about Mamadou,” Rosenior said. “He’s got the potential to be a world-class centre-back. I’m delighted he’s here. Big thanks to the sporting directors and owners for backing my call—this move is right for him and forusm.

I see him growing—physically, tactically, even in the AFCON final. There’s an area on the pitch I thought we needed to strengthen, and now he’ll get his shot. But he knows he’ll have to fight for it, because we’ve got some top centre-backs already.”

Marc Cucurella didn’t hold back when he talked about his part in Chelsea’s wild brawl with West Ham last week.

Things got messy at Stamford Bridge in stoppage time. Adama Traore tossed Cucurella to the ground near the corner flag, and that set off a full-on melee. Players from both teams piled in. West Ham’s Jean-Clair Todibo even grabbed Joao Pedro by the throat—he got a straight red card after the ref checked VAR.

A few days later, Cucurella and Traore ended up together on a Spanish TV show, laughing about the chaos like old friends. Cucurella, poking fun at himself, said, “Joao Pedro saved my life, honestly. If I were him, I’d have run the other way. It was near the end of the game—I put my body in, we tangled, and suddenly I’m standing up, way too close to him. So I thought, ‘Let’s see what happens if I stir things up,’ and then he yanked me down. Suddenly everyone’s fighting.”

Traore shrugged it off. “It was just the heat of the moment. I ran into Marc, and I know he’s a good guy. Honestly, it’s nothing personal—it all stays on the pitch.”

Cucurella couldn’t help but laugh. “I’m calm now—there’s a screen between us!”

The dust-up happened on a night full of drama. The Premier League had just dropped Refcam footage showing how tense things got between the two sides. West Ham actually led 2-0 at halftime thanks to Jarrod Bowen and Crysencio Summerville. But Chelsea clawed their way back—Pedro and Cucurella scored, and then Enzo Fernandez buried a penalty in stoppage time to seal a third straight win for Chelsea.

After the match, Todibo took to social media to own up to his red card. “In the heat and intensity of the match, I made an inappropriate gesture, which goes against the values of football,” he wrote. “I fully accept my mistake and take responsibility—no excuses. That’s not who I am. I sincerely apologise to my club, teammates, our supporters, and anyone else affected by what I did.”