Strasbourg head coach Liam Rosenior has flown to London for talks over the vacant Chelsea head coach role.
The Athletic reported on January 1 that Rosenior was the leading contender to replace Enzo Maresca at Stamford Bridge following the Italian’s departure from the club.
Club sources have confirmed that Rosenior, 41, flew to London on Sunday with Strasbourg president Marc Keller and sporting director David Weir. It was also confirmed that if Rosenior is to replace Maresca, that will not be confirmed until Strasbourg have a new head coach.
Calum McFarlane, the Chelsea Under-21 manager who has been the acting first-team head coach since Maresca departed and helped guide the side to a 1-1 draw with Manchester City at the Etihad on Sunday, was asked about his future in the role.
“We are training tomorrow,” he said. “So, unless I am told otherwise, I will be taking that session. My sole focus has been on this game, but until I am told otherwise, I will lead the team.
“If the new manager comes in before Wednesday, I will be looking forward to taking the under-21s v Benfica.”
“That’s the first I’ve heard of that,” MacFarlane said when asked about reports that he could potentially replace Rosenior as Strasbourg head coach. “I have no idea.”
The Chelsea hierarchy is familiar with Rosenior, with Strasbourg also owned by BlueCo, while he has also worked alongside Chelsea’s co-sporting directors, Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, at previous teams.
Rosenior joined Strasbourg in the summer of 2024 and guided them to UEFA Conference League qualification in his first full season in charge. He has previously held managerial positions at Derby County, on an interim basis, and Hull City.
A player for more than 15 years, Rosenior made nearly 400 appearances in the Premier League and English Football League, featuring for clubs including Hull, Brighton & Hove Albion and Reading.
Speaking on Friday ahead of Strasbourg’s Ligue 1 game against Nice, Rosenior offered no guarantees he would remain in Alsace. Following the 1-1 draw, he said, “If something happens, it happens,” when asked about him potentially joining Chelsea.
Any head coach at Chelsea is expected to fit into a structure put in place by the club’s Clearlake Capital-Todd Boehly ownership that attempts to not place too much responsibility on one individual and instead sees them work closely with a leadership team, including Stewart and Winstanley, that is already in place.
Maresca was named the Premier League’s manager of the month for November but recorded only one league win in December before his exit. His final game in charge, the home draw with Bournemouth on December 30, was a third in a row without a victory and saw him and his side booed off by sections of the Stamford Bridge crowd.
Maresca’s departure followed him informing the club that he was in discussions with people associated with Manchester City in both October and December. That followed The Athletic’s report that the Italian is high on the list of candidates in the event Pep Guardiola leaves City this summer.
Chelsea, fifth in the Premier League, next face Fulham at Craven Cottage on Wednesday.
