Liam Rosenior has addressed the heavy speculation linking him with the vacant Chelsea post following the departure of Enzo Maresca.
The Blues announced they had parted ways with Maresca on New Year’s Day despite a successful 18 months under the Italian, which saw them win the Europa Conference League and Club World Cup.
However, a run of just one win in their last seven Premier League games, as well as growing tensions between the head coach and the club’s hierachy have seen the two go their separate ways.
Chelsea are now on their hunt for their seventh manager of the BlueCo era, having chopped and changed on several occasions since taking over the club in 2022.
The west London club are said to be keen to make a swift appointment, with reports suggesting that Strasbourg boss Rosenior is the frontunner to replace Maresca.
Rosenior led Strasbourg to a seventh-place finish and a return to European football during his first season at the club. They currently sit seventh in Ligue 1 after 16 games this campaign.
Strasbourg are also owned by the BlueCo consortium, with several players making the switch from the French club to Chelsea and vice-versa over recent transfer windows.
Speaking to the press before his side’s league clash with Nice on Saturday, Rosenior insisted he was happy in his current role but could offer no guarantees over his long-term future at the French club.
‘I’m going to talk about Nice because that’s my job,’ the Englishman said. ‘There’s a lot of noise, a lot of speculation, but as a coach, if you get involved in that, you fail. My job is here, I love this club.
‘In life, there are zero guarantees. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring. I do my job. There has already been speculation.
‘I don’t want to guarantee how long I’ll be here, but I enjoy myself here every day. I intend to continue to do so as long as I am here. I love this club but I can’t guarantee anything. No one can do that
Next Chelsea manager odds
Liam Rosenior – 3/10
Filipe Luis – 7/1
Cesc Fabregas – 9/1
Oliver Glasner, Andoni Iraola – 10/1
Francesco Farioli – 16/1
Roberto De Zerbi, Xavi -20/1
Odds courtesy of William Hill
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‘I want to do my job here, it’s simple. The reality today is that I am the manager of Strasbourg and that I am focused on my position.’
Asked if there had been contact between Chelsea and Strasbourg, he added: ‘There are exchanges because we are part of the same group.
‘I’m honest, you can never control everything in life. I could say I’m going to stay here for years and then get fired.’
In the meantime, Chelsea will be led by Under-21 head coach Calum McFarlane, with the interim boss facing a tricky visit to Manchester City in his first game.
‘Tt’s been a crazy 24 hours,’ he said in his pre-match press conference. ‘A whirlwind, as you can imagine. But also really enjoyable and really exciting. I can only feel positive about it. It’s an amazing experience.
‘Ultimately, it’s a football match. It’s not really about me or my first game or playing against Pep. It’s about Chelsea versus City. Two top sides. We’ll go there and compete.
‘We’ve seen this year how this team can do in big moments. We’re really looking forward to that challenge.’
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