Chelsea’s BlueCo hierarchy are likely to continue to back Liam Rosenior over the summer even if the club do not secure Champions League football.
The west London side are enduring a torrid March as the Premier League reaches the business end, with recent defeats to Everton and Newcastle putting the club at risk of missing out on a spot in the top five on the final day.
The Blues were also on the receiving end of an unedifying 8-2 scoreline against Paris Saint-Germain, which knocked them out of the Champions League.
Daily Mail Sport understands that it would take a collapse of much higher proportions however to force the ownership group’s hand to replace Rosenior.
Rosenior will also have a hand in the summer’s recruitment, with the manager in talks with the leadership as the club plots the busy window ahead.
The former Strasbourg manager signed a six-year deal with the club when he was tempted over from Chelsea’s sister club in January.
Chelsea remain steadfast in their backing of under-fire manager Liam Rosenior long-term
The club’s vice-captain Enzo Fernandez appeared to hint at discord in the dressing room under Rosenior in an emotional interview after exiting the Champions League, as he criticised the way former manager Enzo Maresca’s departure was handled and hinted at uncertainty over his future at the club.
But Rosenior insisted that the players were behind him after their 3-0 defeat to Everton last weekend.
‘For me, I don’t think there’s a lack of effort. I don’t think there’s a lack of belief or determination in the team,’ Rosenior said after the final whistle.
‘In fact, I felt like Enzo kept going until the very, very last minute today.
‘So, I’m aware when you’re on a run of defeats that we’re on, and when you’re on a run of performances that we’ve had, those things get levelled at you. But I don’t think that’s the issue in this moment.’
Sitting sixth ahead of the international break, Chelsea are just two points ahead of Brentford, having missed a number of opportunities to leapfrog similarly uneven Liverpool in fifth.
Things will get no easier for the Club World Cup champions when the league resumes in April, with tough tests against Manchester City and Manchester United first up.
