Chelsea boss Rosenior defends his late triple sub with PSG leading 8-2 in aggregate
Chelsea were pummeled in both legs of their round of 16 match against PSG, and Liam Rosenior has had to defend some of his late substitutions.

Chelsea had an uphill battle heading in to Stamford Bridge coming into the night, but that hill only got steeper after allowing two goals in the first half hour. Manager Liam Rosenior choose to give some of his guys a rest late in the match, and had to face the music after the Blues were eliminated.
Rosenior rest stars for final stretch
After getting humbled in Paris, Chelsea had to come home and look for a miracle to keep their Champions League campaign alive. It was always going to be difficult against the defending champions, and the Parisians all but ended it just a quarter of an hour in to the first half of the second leg.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored in the sixth minute and Bradley Barcola doubled the advantage less than ten minutes later. PSG were able to take their foot off the gas for the rest of the way as the defense held the home side to a clean sheet as fans began to hit the exits after the hour mark.
Right around the same time that some fans started to pack their things and leave the stadium Rosenoir prepped a triple substitute that didn’t seem to please the fans. “They’ve played over 100 games in 18 months, they’ve had no break in terms of the international games, the travelling that people like Joao Pedro and Enzo Fernandez do to South America,” he explained knowing Chelsea still have a top four spot to chase.
Fans revolt at Stamford Bridge?
Cole Palmer, Joao Pedro and Enzo Fernandez were all taken off with more than a third of the 90′ left and the Blues boss was meet with murmurs from the fans. “I have to make really difficult decisions which at the time don’t look great. You never want to take off your best players when you’re five goals down but I want to make the decisions which are right for this football club in the long term,” said Rosenior.
The loss was Chelsea´s four in six games in all competitions and things are starting to get dire at Stamford Bridge. The fans are starting to turn on the players and coach after a rough patch that has cost them Champions League, and could end up costing them a place in the top four.
Chelsea will now focus on the rest of the league campaign and their FA Cup quarterfinal match against Port Vale. They will travel to Everton first, hoping to take three points out of Hill Dickson Stadium and try to close the gap on fifth placed Liverpool and fourth placed Aston Villa, and then turn their attention to their cup tie after the international break.
Related stories
Get closer to the game! Whether you like your soccer of the European variety or that on this side of the pond, our AS USA app has it all. Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more. Plus, stay updated on NFL, NBA and all other big sports stories as well as the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.
And there’s more: check out our TikTok and Instagram reels for bite-sized visual takes on all the biggest soccer news and insights.
Complete your personal details to comment