Chelsea sack Liam Rosenior ahead of FA Cup semi-final in bid to save season | OneFootball

English coach lasts a little over three months into six-year contract

Chelsea have sacked Liam Rosenior following the club’s dismal run of form and appointed Calum McFarlane as interim head coach for the rest of the season.

Standard Sport understands Chelsea’s hierarchy have not yet begun contacting candidates for the full-time job. They will hire Rosenior’s permanent successor in the summer.

Rosenior has been dismissed after little more than three months in the job following Tuesday’s 3-0 defeat at Brighton , which was a fifth Premier League loss in a row without scoring, and a seventh defeat in eight games across all competitions.

The head coach leaves Chelsea sitting in seventh in the Premier League, with their hopes of Champions League qualification all but over. It is understood that the club felt the importance of European qualification and Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final against Leeds dictated a change of head coach.

Clearlake Capital’s Behdad Eghbali, the Chelsea co-owner, was in attendance at the Amex Stadium on Tuesday evening and was part of extensive talks about Rosenior’s immediate future that took place on Wednesday.

Sources say the club wanted to give Rosenior time and respected him “enormously” but felt they needed to act now to save the season. The difficulty of coming in mid-season has been acknowledged by the hierarchy and a breakdown of relationships with the players denied.

Internally, there is an acceptance at Chelsea that they have not got every decision right this season.

A Chelsea club statement released on Wednesday evening read: “Chelsea Football Club has today parted company with head coach Liam Rosenior.

“On behalf of everyone at Chelsea FC, we would like to place on record our gratitude to Liam and his staff for all their efforts during their time with the club.

“Liam has always conducted himself with the highest integrity and professionalism following his appointment mid-way through the season.

The statement continued: “Calum McFarlane will take charge of the team as interim head coach until the end of the season with support from existing club backroom staff, as we strive to achieve European qualification and progress in the FA Cup.

“As the club works to bring stability to the head coach position, we will undertake a process of self-reflection to make the right long-term appointment.”

41-year-old Rosenior leaves the club with the lowest win percentage of any permanent Chelsea head coach since the turn of the millennium.

His Chelsea tenure began promisingly, winning six of his first seven games in charge.

But form fell off a cliff last month, following an unconvincing win over Wrexham in the FA Cup, as Chelsea first capitulated against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League - losing 8-2 on aggregate - which marked the beginning of the end.

Rosenior leaves with just one win from his final eight games, which came in the FA Cup quarter-finals against Port Vale who were, at the time, rooted to the bottom of the League One table.