Liam Rosenior needs to copy Arteta and Slot to save his relationship with the Chelsea fans

Cameron Smith

• 16 Mar 2026 11:00 CDT
• 6 min read

Analysis

Liam Rosenior is suddenly under huge pressure at Chelsea. After nine matches in charge, the only blemishes on his record were two defeats against arguably the best team in the world - Arsenal. Other than those two Carabao Cup losses to the Gunners, Rosenior had guided the Blues to seven wins and things were looking rosy.

The situation has taken a dramatic turn for the worse in recent weeks, though, and cracks are starting to appear already.

Chelsea have only won three of their last eight games across all competitions - versus Hull City, Aston Villa and Wrexham - while they are on the verge of Champions League elimination following a 5-2 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the first-leg of their last-16 tie. They have also dropped to sixth place in the Premier League table after one win, two draws and two defeats in their last five English top flight fixtures.

Barring a monumental comeback at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night, Chelsea will be out of Europe’s elite club competition at the first knockout hurdle and they face the prospect of failing to qualify for next year’s edition after suffering a poor 1-0 loss against Newcastle United in the Premier League on Saturday.

With Bruno Guimaraes, Sandro Tonali and Joelinton all missing from Eddie Howe’s starting XI, Chelsea were expected to dominate at Stamford Bridge, especially considering Newcastle travel to Barcelona for a decisive Champions League clash at Camp Nou on Wednesday following a 1-1 draw in the first-leg.

However, while the Blues enjoyed the lion’s share of possession, they mustered just three shots on target and were undone by a simple attacking move that ended with Anthony Gordon tucking the ball into an empty net from close range.

After the game, Rosenior chose to lament referee Paul Tierney for interrupting Chelsea’s pre-match huddle in the centre circle and in doing so, he appears to have lost the support of the Blues fanbase.

The jury was still out following the naive tactical set-up he deployed at the Parc des Princes last week, however a large section of Chelsea supporters have officially called for the Englishman to be sacked after the loss to Newcastle.

Under Enzo Maresca, Chelsea were often laboured in attack, but this came hand-in-hand with a more secure defensive structure. Under Rosenior, the Blues are far more proactive with their press and while this has led to greater attacking fluidity and speed, it has come at the cost of stability at the back.

The form of Wesley Fofana certainly hasn’t helped this issue either. Barring a concussion in September, the 25-year-old has been injury-free for the entire season so far, but he has been underwhelming since the arrival of Rosenior and for a player who cost over €80 million, Chelsea need more.

The Frenchman was sent off for two yellow card offences against Burnley last month, with Chelsea eventually conceding a stoppage time equaliser in his absence, and he was at fault for Gordon’s aforementioned strike versus Newcastle after jogging back rather than sprinting when Joe Willock was played through on goal.

The easy win Liam Rosenior can achieve

Rosenior’s task of getting the fans onside is an extremely difficult one. Chelsea’s squad doesn’t suit such frantic end-to-end football and it wouldn’t be a surprise if the strain of their new pressing formula is a key reason why Reece James is now set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines after suffering another hamstring injury.

Malo Gusto was also missing from training on Monday after being required to essentially play as a right-back and a right winger in back-to-back matches in the space of less than 72 hours.

One thing Rosenior could do to ease fan pressure is follow in the footsteps of Mikel Arteta and Arne Slot by promoting a young academy star into a prominent first-team role.

Of course, Chelsea are in the midst of a Champions League battle, but so are Liverpool, while Arsenal are the runaway favourites for Premier League glory this term. However, Rio Ngumoha was handed his first English top flight start during Liverpool’s 1-1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, and won the Man of the Match award, while Max Dowman became the youngest ever Premier League goalscorer versus Everton on Saturday.

Meanwhile, Chelsea’s biggest academy star - Josh Acheampong - wasn’t even selected in their matchday squad to face Newcastle. The England U21 international has amassed significantly more senior minutes than either Ngumoha or Dowman this season, but his absence versus the Magpies was a notable one.

When asked to explain Acheampong’s omission after the game, Rosenior admitted: “Josh, for me, that's just a decision I made in terms of the bench, what we needed for a really physical, dominant Newcastle team when it comes to set plays. Having Benoit [Badiashile], Mamadou [Sarr] and Tosin [Adarabioyo] to deal with that, I felt was a better way to go.”

Acheampong was also excluded from Chelsea's squad for their previous Premier League fixture, against Aston Villa, and he has only played at centre-back once since the appointment of Rosenior.

While things may change on a match-by-match basis, Acheampong seems to be Chelsea’s sixth-choice central defender at current - behind Trevoh Chalobah, Fofana, Tosin, Badiashile and Sarr - and their third-choice right-back - behind Gusto and James.

Granted, it’s far easier to trust an attacking player with senior involvement at a younger age, given mistakes aren’t punished as notably, but Acheampong has certainly performed at a higher level than both Tosin and Badiashile this season, while Fofana’s form has also been a concern, as mentioned.

The decision to recall Sarr from his loan spell at Strasbourg appeared to have been made with the intention of providing Rosenior with an additional central defender to bolster his ranks for the remainder of the season. However, the Frenchman has only played 92 minutes in the Premier League since his return to Stamford Bridge and his arrival has simply demoted Acheampong down the pecking order.

STATS

Josh Acheampong

D (CR)

Chelsea

Josh Acheampong

D (CR)

Chelsea

All Tournaments

2025/26

• 23

  Games

• 2

  Goals

• 0

  Assists

View all stats

Considering the Englishman is being watched by every elite club in Europe that’s a worry, and Chelsea fans are already fearing an exit in a similar vein to Lewis Hall’s move to Newcastle.

Hall is now one of the best left-backs in world football and, if he fulfils his enormous potential, Acheampong is destined to follow suit. But, Chelsea risk losing him. He’s yet to agitate for a move, however it won’t be long before the 19-year-old looks elsewhere if he continues to be overlooked at Stamford Bridge.

Acheampong isn’t yet a perfect centre-back and he was among those responsible for Leeds' equaliser in mid-February, but he’s an immense talent and if Rosenior wants an easy win, selecting the academy graduate would be a sure-fire way to help his standing amongst the Chelsea fanbase.

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