A new era is upon us at Chelsea. Enzo Maresca was shown the exit door after a poor run of form, although there were rumours of a falling out with the ownership behind the scenes, which might have had an even bigger influence on the decision to part ways with him than the results on the pitch. Liam Rosenior has been brought in as his replacement.
There were many who raised their eyebrows at the idea of bringing in an unproven manager like Rosenior to take on a job of this magnitude. The Englishman has made a positive impression with his early comments though, and gotten a lot of people on his side, who might not have been impressed by the appointment at first.
It is clear that Rosenior can talk the talk. But can he walk the walk? We shall find out soon. His journey as Chelsea manager begins against Charlton. A relatively easy start, but also with the potential of going very wrong and putting the pressure on him immediately.
In the long run, if Rosenior is to be a success, the club will need to back him. They will need to make some quality signings, perhaps moving away from their transfer strategy, which has largely seen them bring in mediocre talent to the club, most of whom have not had a positive impact on the team or results.
David Ornstein links Chelsea with move for £100m midfielder
Amid all this, it looks like the Blues might have their eyes on one of the Premier League's most highly-rated midfielders. David Ornstein was recently talking on The Athletic about Elliot Anderson possibly leaving Nottingham Forest in the summer. The journalist mentioned Chelsea as a club that could be in the mix to sign him.
Ornstein mentioned other clubs like Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Man United as well. So, it won't be an easy deal to pull off if you are Chelsea. And the transfer fee could be in the region of £80-100 million, if not more.
Chelsea already have some solid options in the middle of the park. Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo have been starters for years now. Andrey Santos is someone who Rosenior knows how to get the best out of as well, having done so during his loan spell at Strasbourg.
The injury situation of Romeo Lavia remains a worry though and it feels like the club might be starting to give up after three seasons of never-ending fitness issues. Dario Essugo is also another player who came in this summer and immediately got injured.