Liam Rosenior promised a Chelsea that fans could be proud of, but his latest U-turn has exposed the rhetoric that fans can see straight through.
The club have adopted regular team huddles since the start of the second half in Naples, a moment that had played a part in the 3–2 comeback victory in the hostile atmosphere against the Italian champions.
The ritual has remained a consistent feature during Rosenior’s tenure. The latest example came at the weekend against Newcastle, where he was clearly involved in the decision to “respect the ball” before kick-off.
Regardless of how Paul Tierney’s role in the huddle is viewed, rightly or wrongly, the English manager’s strong post-match comments questioning the referee’s credibility and professionalism only added another layer to his involvement and views on the matter.
Now, the huddle is in doubt and claims it will unlikely feature in the Champions League Round of 16 second leg against Paris Saint-Germain tonight for the fear of “bringing more noise on ourselves”.
In addition to the theme around the huddle reversal, Chelsea fans are directing their frustration at the promises when he arrived, that he would get his team playing quick, entertaining, and attacking football that would get them off their seats. You can question whether that has been seen in certain games but largely the evolution from Enzo Maresca has yet to take off.
Comments in March add weight to the latest backtracking moment, as he claimed the fruition of his tactics could take some time to fully implement. Maybe a step back for Rosenior given the realization of his task or step up in management too soon?
Has there been pressure from the Chelsea hierarchy regarding the huddle incident?
Chelsea have never been a club to follow the PR handbook, particularly during the Roman Abramovich era, and you could argue that approach has carried over into the Todd Boehly period in charge.
However, Rosenior stepping back from his involvement in the huddle could suggest the decision came from above. Defending the idea so strongly in the immediate aftermath of Saturday’s match, whether he was truly responsible for it or not, only to distance himself from it two days later feels unusual.
If it were genuinely the players’ idea, you would expect the manager to continue backing them and their processes, particularly given the importance of maintaining trust and unity within the squad.
That raises the question of whether there was a firm intervention from the club’s hierarchy to take some of the heat away from the situation and shift the narrative before it gathered further momentum.
Whether that was the intention or not, the sudden change in tone has only added to the intrigue. Has it made Rosenior appear weak in the eyes of some supporters because of the abrupt backtrack, or could it instead help restore some of the credibility that may have been lost in the fallout from the latest incident?
Time will tell whether we will see the infamous huddle tonight.