Chelsea seem to be back to square one once again. After 18 months under the management of Enzo Maresca, the club have parted ways with the Italian, even though he had exceeded all expectations in his debut season. This time around, their performances had dipped a bit for sure. But there was a recognition that it was largely down to the Blues' injury problems as well as their inability to provide the manager with what he needed to succeed.
Maresca had asked for a centre-back after Levi Colwill's ACL injury in pre-season. A reasonable request after seeing your best defender pick up a potential season-ending problem. But he was not provided with another option there.
In terms of the signings that Chelsea made, most, if not all of them, did not do much to improve the squad. The club always spend money but questions need to be asked about how smart they are with their spending.
Is it a good idea to spend €100 million on two average wingers like Alejandro Garnacho and Jamie Gittens? Or would it have been better to bring in one superstar, who would be a game-changer for Chelsea, for that same figure?
Big hint dropped about Chelsea's next manager
Liam Rosenier has emerged as the favourite to replace Maresca as Chelsea's manager. And some of his recent comments might be hinting that a move is indeed on the cards. As reported by Fabrizio Romano, the Strasbourg boss said:
"My future? It's a very beautiful city, with very beautiful people, a great club. I liked everything.
“The players were amazing. I really want the best for this club. I don't know if this is my last game. In life we don't know…"
Notice how Rosenier is already starting to talk about certain things in the past tense. How he 'liked' everything at Strasbourg. Or how the players 'were' amazing. Perhaps we are reading too much into it. Or maybe, just maybe, it is a Freudian slip. Also, when managers refuse to rule things out while being linked with an exit, it usually points in one direction.
If Rosenier does end up getting the job, the fans need to back him. But at the same time, there is the worry that it would be an appointment to suit the 'model' of the club, more than anything else.
Let's be real, Rosenier does not have the credentials to be Chelsea's manager. He has been a mid-table manager in Ligue 1. Before that, he was coaching Hull City. Do you think the club would be making this kind of an appointment under Roman Abramovich?
For BlueCo, it feels like their 'model' takes precedence over everything else. That would have made sense if it had a proven track record of success. But going into their fourth season as Chelsea owners, considering the amount of money that has been spent, it has to be adjudged a complete failure and something in need of a revamp if they want to halt Chelsea's continued slip towards mediocrity.