Liam Rosenior leaves Chelsea three and a half months into contract until 2032

Chelsea have sacked Liam Rosenior after a dreadful run of form saw the head coach lose the support of the dressing room. Rosenior has departed three months into a six-and-a-half-year deal and leaves with his side in danger of missing out on European football.

The Stamford Bridge hierarchy had hoped to give the 41-year-old time to implement his vision but their hand was forced after a dramatic slump left Chelsea seven points off the Champions League place and saw them lose five consecutive league games without scoring for the first time since 1912.

The decision was taken after the sporting leadership team held a debrief at the club’s training ground yesterday and accepted that a second managerial change of the season was the only way to reverse the situation. Rosenior, who was hired as Enzo Maresca’s replacement in January, offered his thoughts on how to get the season back on track but there was no avoiding his fate after just 106 days in charge.

Calum McFarlane, who worked as interim after Maresca left, is back in the role of caretaker head coach for the rest of the season and efforts to appoint a permanent manager this summer are under way. There is no standout candidate, although Chelsea want to shift to a manager with top-level experience. There is admiration for Como’s Cesc Fàbregas and Porto’s Francesco Farioli. Xabi Alonso and Andoni Iraola, the Bournemouth manager, will be available this summer. There are expected to be between five to 10 candidates. If there is a move for Iraola, who is regarded as a quality coach, it will wait until after the Spaniard leaves Bournemouth in the summer.

Chelsea, who are understood to only have to pay Rosenior one year of compensation, were compelled to act after a shocking performance during their 3-0 defeat to Brighton on Tuesday night. Rosenior ripped into his players in his post-match media duties, criticising their attitude. The disconnect between the coaching staff and the players was impossible to ignore, particularly with sections of the squad pushing for change after the Brighton game.

Chelsea, who face Leeds in an FA Cup semi-final on Sunday, felt they had to give the players a chance to finish the season strongly. They are in seventh place, two points off sixth, and can still secure a Europa League spot at least.

Although there were young English players who liked Rosenior it is understood Chelsea’s Spanish speakers regarded the former Strasbourg, Hull and Derby manager with little enthusiasm. The relationship grew strained after Enzo Fernández was dropped for two games after a series of rebellious interviews. Rosenior had the support of the club on the ban and thought he could ride out the storm but Fernández is one of the biggest characters in the squad. The situation around the £106.7m Argentina midfielder created too much noise.

There was a sense Rosenior lacked the CV to command the respect of expensive internationals. Flashes of public insubordination did not help the situation. Chelsea have been stalked by indiscipline – they have picked up 16 yellow cards for dissent in the league and 10 red cards in all competitions this season.

Chelsea were conscious of the challenges faced by Rosenior, who did not have a pre-season. Behdad Eghbali, the co-owner, backed his man in a rare interview last week. Chelsea were working with Rosenior on summer targets and hoped to keep him even in the event of them missing out on the Champions League. They were close with Rosenior as he was previously at their partner club, Strasbourg. A key complication is the mid-season change was forced on them by Maresca’s acrimonious exit on New Year’s Day. Chelsea did not fire Maresca, whose departure nonetheless did not go down well with some players.

But Chelsea are looking for their sixth permanent manager since their takeover by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital in 2022. The process will not be rushed. Chelsea have not spoken to anyone yet and accept there is a need to reflect on past decisions.

A sizeable section of supporters have protested against the ownership and criticised a model based around signing young players. Chelsea intend to make changes to their recruitment approach this summer, with plans afoot to bring in more established Premier League talent. But there is still backing for the club’s five sporting directors, Paul Winstanley, Laurence Stewart, Sam Jewell, Joe Shields and Dave Fallows.

McFarlane takes over a team who have not kept a clean sheet in the league since January. Rosenior’s tactical methods have been questioned and he has struggled to recover from the costly decision to replace his No 1 goalkeeper, Robert Sánchez, with Filip Jorgensen for the first leg of the defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the last 16 of the Champions League.

The injuries have also piled up. Cole Palmer, João Pedro, Reece James, Levi Colwill, Jamie Gittens and Estêvão Willian, who is a major doubt to make Brazil’s World Cup squad after suffering a hamstring injury, were absent against Brighton. Rosenior switched to a back five but the move backfired and a half-hearted display sealed his fate.