The fall seems endless for Chelsea. On the Brighton pitch, the Blues plunged further into crisis with a heavy defeat (3-0) which symbolizes the catastrophic end of the season for the London club. It all started very early in this nightmare when Ferdi Kadioglu opened the scoring in the third minute, before Jack Hinshelwood made the break on the hour mark and Danny Welbeck finished off the visitors in added time. This setback is especially historic for the wrong reasons since the Blues have just suffered a fifth consecutive defeat in the league without scoring a single goal, a series which had not been seen at Stamford Bridge since… 1912. In the Premier League standings, the situation is becoming critical. Overtaken by Brighton and now seventh, Chelsea sees the qualifying places for the Champions League slip away dangerously four days from the end.
At the heart of the storm, Liam Rosenior appears more fragile than ever. The English technician, who arrived with the image of a modern and promising coach, now sees his future seriously threatened after only a few months at the head of the Blues. After the elimination against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, Chelsea are no longer moving forward and give the impression of a totally disoriented group. Chaos even arose before kick-off when the absence of Cole Palmer and João Pedro leaked on social networks via… Marc Cucurella’s hairdresser. On the ground, the reaction never came. The Londoners were dominated in all areas of the game and Rosenior himself exploded after the match. The coach no longer protected his players, denouncing a performance “unacceptable at all levels” and admitting to being “in shock” And “so angry”. A brutal speech which illustrates the extent of the divide in a locker room in distress.
Unheard of since 1912
In the aftermath of the debacle, the English press went wild. The tabloid Daily Mail describes a totally lost team and openly questions the survival of its coach. “How much longer will this last? »the newspaper asks after “a fifth consecutive defeat without scoring”. In a particularly murderous formula, the daily estimates that “to say that this Chelsea team is completely lost under the leadership of Liam Rosenior would be an insult to this famous team which has experienced many disasters”. The atmosphere in the London parking lot reflected this anger. The media recalls that very violent chants resounded after Brighton’s second goal, with supporters clearly chanting “Fuck you, Rosenior.”. For the Daily Mailthe question is now simple for leaders. “Do they trust Rosenior to get them out of this situation or do they think he has lost control of this group of players? »
The tone is just as brutal elsewhere in the British media. THE Sun claims Chelsea’s performance could “toll the death knell for Liam Rosenior’s reign”while the visiting supporters expressed their verdict well before the end of the match with the same angry chant aimed at their coach. THE Daily Mirror definitely talking about a team “soulless” and total humiliation, believing that “When fans lash out with such brutality, there is often no turning back”. Even the more calm analyzes are relentless. In the columns of Guardianthe meeting is described as “a new dark chapter in the Rosenior saga”while the newspaper points out that Brighton today represents “a model of responsible management that Chelsea has failed to imitate”. One sentence perhaps sums it up best. “Chelsea looked woefully poor and were dissected by an opponent full of energy and creativity”. A chilling conclusion for a club which, until recently, was aiming for the European summits and which now finds itself on the verge of implosion.
