The Board

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"He's a super smart guy, but the one thing I can't work out about Chelsea is what sort of club are they? What do they actually trying to achieve. Are they trying to win?

They'll say of course we're trying to win but you always felt, whether you like the Roman Abramovich era or not, that they were always going to compete or contest.

But I don't get the same sort of feeling from this Chelsea package with the new owners"

 

[mkh 664]

[OneMoSalah 9,000]

57 minutes ago, mkh said:

What a load of horseshit, anyone falling for what these have said are as naive as they come, they are constantly just buying time.

Effectively saying we will look to do this in the summer. Was the same last summer and the one before.

Crock of shite. 

 

Edited yesterday at 14:24 by OneMoSalah

[Strike 7,669]

50 minutes ago, mkh said:

A lot of their points fall apart on basic scrutiny.

For example While he did want a centre-back, he was unwilling to sanction departures to create space, and no suitable option emerged following the pursuit of Dean Huijsen. Liverpool found themselves in a similar position.

Liverpool almost signed Guehi on deadline day and Arsenal signed Hincapie as backup, PSG signed Zabarnyi. There were plenty of options. 

 

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EXCL: Inside Chelsea: The truth about the project

I sat down with Chelsea’s Sporting leadership team

https://siphillipstalkschelsea.substack.com/p/inside-Chelsea-the-truth-about-the

Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down with Chelsea’s Sporting Leadership Team to discuss the club’s project, raise concerns, and gain a clearer understanding of the long-term strategy. I hope this article provides insight into Chelsea’s inner workings and explains why I remain positive about where the club can go, if execution is right.

The Concerns Raised

The key concerns I highlighted were:

• A youth-focused recruitment strategy leading to inconsistent performances

• Inexperience across the club

• Gaps within the squad

• Whether the project can realistically deliver major trophies

• Whether Chelsea’s ambition is to win titles or simply secure top-four finishes

Why This Strategy Exists

First, it was important to understand where this strategy comes from and why Chelsea believe it is necessary. The club recognises that there are around five European teams that are effectively impossible to compete with directly on a financial level, due to differences in overall revenue, stadium income, and state ownership - PSG, Bayern, Barca, Real Madrid and Man City.

Attempting to compete in the same way long-term would leave Chelsea vulnerable. In truth, that way of working was already showing signs of strain under Roman Abramovich. While successful in cups, Chelsea’s league form fluctuated significantly. The club last won the Premier League in 2016/17, and across the remaining seasons under Roman, Chelsea averaged a fourth-place finish, around 25 points off the title pace.

In truth, Chelsea have not yet found the right balance between the two, resulting in inconsistent performances and a significant number of dropped points from winning positions. While the youthfulness of the squad has played a role in this, it is far from the only factor. Enzo Maresca’s limited ability to influence games from the bench also contributed to these issues.

Chelsea understand that knockout competitions like the FA Cup, League Cup, or even the Champions League can be won with favourable draws and timely form. Look at the Club World Cup in the summer for example! The true litmus test, however, is the league. You cannot fluke a 38-game season. You must be consistently elite.

The Rebuild and Expectations

This reality drove the decision to commit to a full rebuild: lowering the average squad age, restructuring wages, and building a sustainable future, while still remaining competitive in the present.

Importantly, the minimum expectation at Chelsea has not changed. Champions League qualification every season remains the baseline. Much of the rebuilding work has now been completed, and the current squad should be capable of finishing in the top five this season and beyond.

That does not mean Chelsea will stop investing. Rather, a significant amount of groundwork has already been laid.

PSR, UEFA Constraints, and Market Freedom

It is also worth noting that Chelsea have not been operating freely in the transfer market. PSR restrictions during 2024, alongside UEFA sanctions last season, limited flexibility. Those UEFA issues have now been navigated, and upcoming changes to PSR rules should offer greater room to manoeuvre.

This should not be interpreted as a radical shift in strategy, but it will provide more freedom moving forward.

Closing the Gap and Sustaining Success

Chelsea’s next challenge is closing the gap to the teams above and then competing consistently for the Premier League and Champions League. Crucially, the club wants to sustain that level once reached, rather than spike and fall away again.

A comparison can be made with Arsenal’s recent rise, though Chelsea’s aim is to finish the job rather than fall short.

Everything Chelsea do is framed for the long-term benefit. The club does not want to mortgage its future for short-term optics. That does not mean Chelsea will never sign older players or those without resale value, but such deals must make sense holistically. There is no under-23s-only rule.

To date, under this sporting leadership, the right opportunity has not yet presented itself.

Take Antoine Semenyo as an example. A £65m fee plus wages exceeding £200k per week would significantly disrupt the wage structure without materially changing Chelsea’s performance this season. However, if in the future a player represents the missing piece in a title push, the club would not hesitate to act.

Accountability and Internal Pressure

One key takeaway from the meeting was the level of self-reflection and accountability within the club. Despite media portrayals, the sporting team is under immense pressure to deliver, but is also protected and empowered to make decisions aligned with the club’s long-term interests.

Without this structure, clubs end up making reckless win-now decisions that cause long-term damage.

Examples include signing injury-prone strikers for £125m when also signing high-potential options with Isak and Ekitike, or committing massive fees and wages to forwards who are not elite and difficult to sell. Players such as Havertz or Gyökeres on £250k per week or more restrict resale markets to only a handful of clubs worldwide.

Another thing I want to point out is they know they haven’t been perfect, they know they have made mistakes and they have processes in place to ensure the same mistakes aren’t made.

The Managerial Situation

There is little value in dwelling on Maresca now that he has departed. However, it is clear that the relationship had broken down, and change was necessary.

Outside of other issues, as I stated on The Blues Feed, Chelsea should be the destination, not a stepping stone. If a manager or player is openly flirting with other clubs, they should be moved on. Full commitment is non-negotiable.

Squad Management and Medical Influence

Contrary to some reports, Chelsea categorically deny influencing team selection beyond player welfare and injury prevention. The club’s medical and performance teams, among the best in football, provide recommendations based on injury risk and conditioning.

Final decisions remain with the manager. If a player is cleared for only 45 minutes, the manager decides whether that time comes from the start or the bench.

Greater transparency around this process may have avoided fan backlash in situations such as Cole Palmer’s substitution. Had supporters known he could not complete 90 minutes, the reaction may have been different.

Recruitment and Manager Involvement

Claims that Maresca was not consulted on transfers are simply false. He approved all summer signings and was actively involved throughout the process.

While he did want a centre-back, he was unwilling to sanction departures to create space, and no suitable option emerged following the pursuit of Dean Huijsen. Liverpool found themselves in a similar position.

Chelsea’s recruitment model is a partnership. There are no manager-only or club-only signings. Both approaches fail long-term.

The New Head Coach: Liam Rosenior

Liam is not an unknown quantity to Chelsea. The club has known him for years, and he has worked within the structure for 18 months. He has longstanding relationships within the sporting team.

He is described as hardworking, humble, intelligent, and articulate, someone the players and fans are likely to connect with. His track record shows consistent overperformance and strong player development.

Tactically, he has already impressed against elite coaches such as Luis Enrique and Oliver Glasner. With the youngest squads in Europe, it will be fascinating to see what he can achieve with improved player quality and tougher opposition.

The obvious question is whether he is ready for the pressure of the Chelsea job. Only time will tell, but from a personality and leadership standpoint, the signs are encouraging.

Transfers: What to Expect

Chelsea are expected to pursue another elite attacking option this summer, which explains the earlier enquiry for Semenyo before deciding not to proceed.

The club is also aware that it lacks physicality relative to rivals and will look to address this, without sacrificing technical quality, in upcoming windows.

Centre-back and striker remain areas of monitoring, with pathways also being considered for players already owned by the club, including Josh Acheampong, Mamadou Sarr, Aaron Anselmino, Emanuel Emegha, and Dastan Satpayev.

Final Thoughts

As mentioned at the start, I entered this process with concerns. Many of those have been addressed, and I feel more confident about Chelsea’s long-term direction. One thing is very clear to me is throughout the club, there is a passion for us to succeed and a real togetherness which we saw in the 1-1 draw with City. Every single player, coach and director all pulled together in the time of uncertainty to ensure on the field results weren’t effected.

One thing someone said to me really stuck with me as i have felt like this as a Chelsea time for a very long time. We are at WAR with every other club in the Premier League and Europe to achieve the goals we want to.`

This all said, the proof will come through execution and the results we get. Strategy alone guarantees nothing.

Hopefully, this article has provided clarity and reassurance. Let us know your thoughts on the piece, and your feelings about Chelsea’s direction, in the comments below.

Danny Windsor

---

A note by myself, Simon Phillips.

I was at this meeting with Danny and Luke, and one thing I will add is also contrary to belief, members of this sporting team hold a very good footballing knowledge and are VERY passionate about the club - there is no doubts around how hard they work and how obsessed they are with this club.

I have obviously not been as positive on the ownership on X over the last week or so as Danny is being here. But I did get a lot of encouragement from meeting them, as well as from reading back on the points that Danny has articulated superbly here. What I am doing is staying open to everything. I’ve never doubted their ambition, even if my emotions as a fan first can boil over sometimes. But although it seems like gloom and doom right now and I do think that fans have been right to take action and makes their voices heard, there are many things to be encouraged about. Time will tell on it all, as Danny says. For me, this summer and what happens, as I’ve written in an article this week, is CRUCIAL.

Simon Phillips

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Over 90 per cent of Chelsea fans lack confidence in club’s owners, survey finds

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6946191/2026/01/06/Chelsea-fans-no-confidence-hierarchy/

A snap survey by Chelsea Supporters’ Trust has revealed that over 90 per cent of fans do not have confidence in “the ownership group’s football-related decision-making”, while more than 80 per cent are not confident that the club is being run in a way that will deliver “sustained success over the next three to five years”.

The vote closed at 23:59 UK time on Sunday, by which point The Athletic had reported that Liam Rosenior was the leading contender to replace Enzo Maresca as head coach after Chelsea and the Italian parted ways less than two years into his contract.

On Tuesday, Rosenior was confirmed as the current ownership group’s fourth permanent managerial appointment since 2022 on a six-year contract.

The survey, which garnered nearly 4,000 responses in 48 hours, also found that more than 40 per cent of respondents felt the club’s current sporting structure is “not fit for purpose”, with a further 42.69 per cent believing it has “significant weaknesses”.

The most damning response was surely in relation to satisfaction with the owners’ football decisions, with 53.7 per cent of respondents having “no confidence at all” and 36.9 per cent “not very much confidence”.

Similarly, 46.3 per cent of respondents expressed “no confidence at all” in the club’s sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart, as well as the recruitment and football operations teams, with 40.6 per cent having “not very much confidence”.

Analysis of the voting described “clearer football leadership and accountability” as what respondents viewed to be the “overwhelming top priority” for the club to work on.

“The CST believes the findings highlight a material and ongoing confidence gap between the club and its supporters,” the Trust’s statement said on Tuesday. “As a first and necessary step, we urge the club to provide further information and rationale.

“While the strength of feeling reflected in the results may be uncomfortable, the themes identified are not new. They have been evident over a sustained period and have persisted even during times of on-pitch success, indicating that these concerns relate to confidence, clarity and trust rather than short-term results or isolated events.”

Chelsea are owned by BlueCo, the Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital consortium that also owns Ligue 1 side Strasbourg. On Tuesday, the French club’s supporters also expressed displeasure at the way their club is run, calling for their club president’s exit after the “humiliating” departure of Rosenior.

What You Should Read Next

Strasbourg fans’ group says Liam Rosenior’s Chelsea move ‘humiliating’, calls for club president’s exit

Both clubs are owned by the BlueCo consortium and have had 12 player transfers take place between them since the takeover in summer 2023.

In addition to the head coach, 12 players have transferred between the clubs since their joint ownership was completed in 2023.

Chelsea are fifth in the Premier League, having maintained their position with a 1-1 draw against Manchester City with under-21s coach Calum McFarlane in the dugout.

By Jessica Hopkins

Junior News Editor

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Strasbourg fans’ group says Liam Rosenior’s Chelsea move ‘humiliating’, calls for club president’s exit

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6944885/2026/01/06/strasbourg-protests-Chelsea-liam-rosenior-manager/

Strasbourg fans have called for the club president Marc Keller to leave after the “humiliating” departure of Liam Rosenior for Chelsea.

Both clubs are controlled by BlueCo, which is owned by American businessman Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. On Tuesday, Chelsea announced Rosenior’s arrival on a contract to 2032 after parting ways with Enzo Maresca last week.

As reported by The Athletic, Rosenior flew to London on Sunday to continue talks alongside Keller and Strasbourg sporting director David Weir. Rosenior flew back to Strasbourg on Monday and said he “could not turn down the opportunity” in his final press conference at the Ligue 1 club the following day.

“Liam Rosenior’s transfer marks yet another humiliating step in Racing’s subjugation to Chelsea,” read a statement from the Federation Supporters RCS, one of Strasbourg’s largest fan groups.

“For two and a half years, we and others have been trying to raise the alarm about this.

“The problem goes far beyond the sporting impact mid-season and the ambitions of a young coach. It is structural; the future of French club football is at stake.

“Every additional contortion by Marc Keller, every extra minute he spends at the helm of the club, is an insult to the tremendous work done before 2023. What many saw as an exaggeration last September is looking more and more like sound advice: it’s time to leave. Now.”

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A 3-0 capitulation to the Premier League's cut-adrift bottom side has brought all of the club's shortcomings to the surface

BlueCo bought Strasbourg in the summer of 2023 for €76.3million (£66.5m; $89.5m) — a year after completing its purchase of Chelsea for £4.25billion — in what was meant to be a model that benefitted both clubs but has created divisions within the Ligue 1 club’s fanbase.

Last summer, BlueCo spent a club-record €127.5m on new Strasbourg players in the summer transfer window after finishing seventh in Ligue 1 and qualifying for the Conference League. Since the partnership, there have been 12 transfers between the clubs.

The most recent transfer was Chelsea agreeing a deal to sign striker Emmanuel Emegha at the end of the season, prompting the French club’s fans to raise a banner asking him to step down from captaincy. Emegha had scored 14 goals in all competitions during 2024-25 and has five so far this term.

“We are very much the junior partner in the setup,” a spokesperson for one of the four Strasbourg supporters’ organisations told The Athletic earlier this month. “Whereas it’s the Emegha transfer, or if they take our manager, we will always be the little brother.”

Chelsea Under-21s coach Calum McFarlane has led the first team since Maresca’s departure, overseeing a 1-1 draw against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday to keep them in fifth place. Strasbourg are seventh in Ligue 1, winless in five games.

By Jessica Hopkins

Junior News Editor