The first of those is against Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, before which a Chelsea fan group plans to hold their first joint demonstration with sister club Strasbourg to protest BlueCo’s ownership. This performance will not have done much to alleviate growing anger at the way the club are being run.
Rosenoir is likeable and honest and has a job on his hands, but he did himself few favours here by refusing to pick Enzo Fernández, despite the vice-captain’s apology for fluttering his eyelashes in the direction of Real Madrid.
It is understandable that the young Chelsea head coach – and the powers above him – would want to make a point and lay down a marker to the dressing room.
But suspending Fernandez for two games – he had already sat out the 7-0 FA Cup win over Port Vale – felt rather like an act of self-sabotage, especially when he was already without three-quarters of his first-choice back line.
Would Fernandez have made a difference? “Possibly – you see 20/20 in hindsight,” Rosenior said. “Enzo is a top player and honestly he’s a top character and I’m looking forward to having him back next week. Sometimes you make decisions not based on short-term, you make decisions based on what you want to see long-term.
“And it was a long-term decision that myself and the directors and the club aligned [on] – and the leadership group of players that we made – to make sure our values and culture in the long-term is in the right place. But Enzo is now clear, he’s had the conversations he’s needed to have, he’s been fantastic in the last few days supporting myself and the team and I can’t wait to have him back in the squad.”