Chelsea began 2026 with a managerial departure, confirming on New Year’s Day that they had parted company with Enzo Maresca after an 18-month stint in charge.
The Italian won the UEFA Conference League and the FIFA Club World Cup during his time with the Blues and led them back into the Champions League, but this was not enough to paper over the cracks of his strained relationship with the club’s hierarchy.
Liam Rosenior expected to be named new Chelsea boss
Liam Rosenior will be a name familiar to many English football fans, not least because of his famous father and his career as a player.
Born in 1984, Liam is the son of Leroy Rosenior, who enjoyed a 16-year career as a striker for the likes of Fulham, Queens Park Rangers, Fulham and West Ham United.
Football was clearly in the blood and young Liam began his career at Bristol City, making his first-team debut in April 2002. A year later, he scored in the Robins’ Football League Trophy final victory over Carlisle United at the Millennium Stadium and was soon snapped up by Premier League side Fulham in a £55,000 move.
Rosenior would become a regular for the Cottagers and earned seven England U21s caps before joining Reading in 2007. Spells at Hull City and Brighton followed before he hung up his boots in 2018.
After combining punditry with a coaching role in Brighton’s U23s side, he joined the first-team coaching staff of Phillip Cocu’s Derby County side in 2019, rising up to the assistant manager role when Wayne Rooney was appointed the Rams manager in 2021.
Rosenior took over as interim manager following Rooney’s June 2022 exit until September that year, with his first permanent senior head coach role coming in November, when his former side Hull City appointed him on a two-and-a-half year deal.
The 41-year-old would spend two seasons with the Tigers before being sacked by owner Acun Illcali after failing to make the playoffs. He quickly landed the top job at Ligue 1 side Strasbourg, replacing Patrick Vieira at the BlueCo-owned club.
He guided the French side to a seventh-placed finish and European qualification last term and was handed a fresh three-year contract amid reported interest from Premier League sides.
During his coaching career, he built a reputation as an articulate, forward-thinking manager who uses a fluid 3-2-5 formation with a high press. He already has significant experience in developing young players, with his first Strasbourg starting XI seeing him field an entire outfield side of players who were aged 23 or younger - the first time that had happened in the French top flight.
Rosenior earned his UEFA Pro Licence when he was just 32 years-old and with the media-savvy coach already accustomed to working in the BlueCo multi-club ownership group, it is easy to see why the Chelsea board appear to have made this young, ambitious and thoughtful coach their top target.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
