Liam Rosenior on brink of losing job as Chelsea hold review after Brighton defeat

Chelsea are holding a review after a defeat at Brighton that has left Liam Rosenior on the brink of losing his job.

Although club sources have stressed it is standard for debriefs to take place the day after a game, key discussions are taking place at Cobham and a managerial change for the second time this season appears likely. Rosenior, appointed as head coach in January after the departure of Enzo Maresca, has overseen five successive defeats in the Premier League and there are growing concerns that support for him in the dressing room is draining away.

The former Strasbourg manager ripped into his players after a dreadful display against Brighton all but ended their chances of finishing in the top five and earning a Champions League spot. Rosenior criticised their attitude, said “something drastic has to change” and admitted the performance made it look as if there was a disconnect between him and his players. Rosenior has spoken to the sporting leadership team and offered his thoughts on how to get the season back on track.

Chelsea, who are preparing for Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Leeds, set out on Wednesday to work out whether to make a change now or give Rosenior a chance to turn his side’s form around before reassessing at the end of the season. If the 41-year-old goes the expectation is that an interim manager will be handed the reins for the rest of the campaign. Callum McFarlane, who was in caretaker charge for two games after Maresca’s exit, could take over again.

There is sympathy within Chelsea for Rosenior’s plight. He has not had a pre-season and was without Cole Palmer, Reece James, João Pedro, Estêvão Willian, Levi Colwill and Jamie Gittens at Brighton. There is a view that Rosenior has inherited a difficult situation and there are figures within Chelsea who have been desperate for the Englishman to succeed.

Behdad Eghbali, Chelsea’s influential co-owner, last week sought to back Rosenior during a rare public speaking appearance. But there has also been an acknowledgement that results need to improve. Rosenior faced jeers from the away end against Brighton, his tactics are coming under increasing scrutiny and he has struggled to deal with a number of off-pitch problems.

Chelsea, who have dropped to seventh and are at risk of falling into the bottom half, lacked commitment as their thrashing at Brighton consigned them to a fifth consecutive defeat without scoring for the first time since 1912. Rosenior’s switch to a back five did not work. It is understood a vocal contingent within the dressing room have not connected with his methods and have taken against the head coach.

Chelsea were rocked by Enzo Fernández and Marc Cucurella recently questioning the club’s project and why Maresca left. Fernández, who made no attempt to downplay his desire to join Real Madrid this summer, was banned by the club for two games. There was surprise when the Argentinian was handed the captain’s armband against Brighton.

Rosenior has tried to tackle his side’s indiscipline. Chelsea, seven points off fifth-placed Liverpool, have received 16 bookings for dissent in the league and 10 red cards in all competitions this season. Rosenior also looked to tackle a mole in the camp after his starting XI was leaked to French media before both legs of his side’s heavy defeat by Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 of the Champions League. But there was further embarrassment when Cucurella’s barber appeared to reveal the lineup against Brighton in a deleted post on social media.