Liam Rosenior has confirmed that he is on his way to becoming Chelsea’s new manager, bringing an end to days of speculation surrounding his future.
The announcement came dramatically at an unexpected press conference in France on Tuesday morning, where the Strasbourg boss openly admitted that a move to West London is now imminent.
Just days earlier, Rosenior had played down talk of a possible exit from Strasbourg. But behind the scenes, events were moving quickly. The 41-year-old flew into London on Sunday and spent Monday deep in discussions with Chelsea’s hierarchy, following the departure of Enzo Maresca.
Addressing French reporters, Rosenior revealed how rapidly the situation unfolded.
He said:
“On Saturday, I didn’t know what was going to happen. What has happened since is that I have been allowed to speak with one of the biggest clubs in the world. Now, on this day, it looks like I’m going to be the next manager of that football club.
“This opportunity for me is something that I cannot turn down in my life right now. They have an incredible squad, an incredible fanbase and they are Club World Cup champions.
“I haven’t signed yet, I’ve agreed verbally with Chelsea. Everything is agreed, it will probably go through in the next few hours. I’m here because I care about this club and I thought it was important to answer your questions before I go on with the next stage of my career.”
If final paperwork is completed as expected, Rosenior’s first match in charge of Chelsea could come as early as Saturday, when the Blues face Charlton in the FA Cup. In the meantime, caretaker boss Calum MacFarlane is set to oversee Wednesday’s West London derby against Fulham.
Rosenior arrives at Stamford Bridge with just three years of managerial experience. He previously spent two seasons at Hull City before taking over at Ligue 1 side Strasbourg in 2024, making his rise to one of Europe’s biggest clubs a remarkable leap.
Emotion was clearly visible as he spoke about leaving France and closing a chapter of his career.
He added:
“Mixed emotions. Firstly so excited about the future, I cannot lie, my whole life I’ve worked to be a coach. To be presented this opportunity to manage a world class football club is something I’ve always dreamed of.
“I’m emotional now, this is the last day I will wake up as Strasbourg manager. This is football, you create connections with people.
“There’s many memories and good people I’m moving away from. I’m excited but also really appreciative of everything that’s happened here.”
With a verbal agreement already in place, all signs point to Rosenior beginning a new chapter at Chelsea within hours — one that could define the biggest step of his managerial career so far.