"ESTEVAO COULDN’T BELIEVE I WAS A PRO"—LIAM ROSENIOR’S QUOTE GOES VIRAL
Liam Rosenior embraces the "David Brent" memes while recalling Mamadou Sarr to bolster Chelsea's defence ahead of the Wolves clash.
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.”
WHY REECE JAMES’ TENTH HAMSTRING SETBACK THREATENS CHELSEA’S TOP FIVE PURSUIT
Reece James faces another spell on the sidelines as Chelsea confirm the captain suffered a hamstring injury vs Newcastle.
Chelsea just got some tough news: their captain, Reece James, has picked up another hamstring injury, and he’s set for a scan to find out how bad it is.
The timing couldn’t be worse. With Chelsea pushing hard for a top-five finish in the Premier League, they’ve now lost their leader right when they need him most.
James had just played two full games in four days: first away against PSG in the Champions League, then at home versus Newcastle in the league. Right between those matches, he signed a new six-year deal with the club.
Fans started to worry when James missed Chelsea’s open training session on Monday, the day before PSG visited Stamford Bridge for the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.
At his press conference before the PSG match, Rosenior confirmed what people feared. “He felt something in his hamstring at the end of the Newcastle game,” Rosenior said. “We don’t know exactly how bad it is yet, but he’ll definitely miss the PSG game. Hamstring injuries are always tough, so we’ll get him scanned and see what we’re dealing with.”
Chelsea needs a miracle to turn around their Champions League tie after losing 5-2 to PSG in France last week.
For James, this is yet another setback. Since December 2020, he’s suffered ten different hamstring injuries, split between both legs. England manager Thomas Tuchel has even more reason to be anxious, with the national team set to play Uruguay and Japan later this month. James would have been a sure pick, and Tuchel has to name his World Cup squad by May 30.
Just last week, James joined Rosenior for a press conference after his new contract was announced. He told reporters, “I’m in a really good place at the moment; my body feels good." I’m playing regularly two or three games a week, and all I want is to help the team as much as I can.”
Unfortunately, luck just isn’t on his side. He’s set for several weeks out, watching from the sidelines again.
ANALYZING CHELSEA’S POSSESSION CONVERSION RATE CRISIS BEFORE HOSTING A HIGH SCORING PSG SIDE
Trevoh Chalobah targets a "special" night as Chelsea host PSG, aiming to overturn a 5-2 Champions League deficit.
Trevoh Chalobah is looking ahead to what he calls a “very special” night as Chelsea prepares to host Paris Saint-Germain at Stamford Bridge. After last week’s heavy 5-2 loss in Paris, where PSG pulled away late to take control, Chelsea faces the daunting task of overturning a three-goal deficit to reach the Champions League quarter-finals. The reward? A showdown with either Galatasaray or Liverpool.
Coming off a 1-0 defeat to Newcastle on Saturday, Chelsea have just three days between that disappointing result and this crucial second leg. Despite the tight schedule and the uphill battle, Chalobah remains optimistic, eager for a memorable night under the floodlights.
“This is Chelsea, and this is what we’re playing for,” Chalobah said ahead of the match. “We want to compete in the top competitions, both in Europe and in the Premier League. Tuesday’s game is big, and I’m sure it will be something special. It’s going to be tough, but we’ll give it our all. We have to move on from the last match and focus on what’s ahead, starting with PSG.”
Chelsea’s performance against Newcastle left fans frustrated, with the home side booing their team off following Anthony Gordon’s 18th-minute winner. While the defeat added to Chelsea’s struggles on home turf this season, Chalobah acknowledged that tough games like this are part of football.
“We created plenty of chances that didn’t quite come off,” he reflected. “We controlled a lot of possession, spent a lot of time in their half, but Newcastle defended well, sat deep, and made it difficult. We just lacked that final finish in front of the goal. It was a mix of things; our final product wasn’t quite there, and Newcastle were disciplined with their low block. They were clinical with their chance, and that made the difference.”
“These things happen in football. It’s often about small margins. Now, we just have to pick ourselves up and focus on the next challenges, because there are plenty of big games coming.”
