Liam Rosenior on building relationships and being caught out by Cole Palmer | News | Official Site
Liam Rosenior says his approach to building relationships with every member of the Blues squad is rooted in his desire to win games and deliver success at Stamford Bridge – and believes the work done during his first month was reflected by his light-hearted moment with Cole Palmer after our win at Wolves.
There were plenty of reasons to smile for the Blues after Saturday’s 3-1 Premier League victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers, as we made it four wins out of four in that competition under Rosenior and seven in nine games in charge.
There was also a moment of laughter after the game, as the Blues head coach’s post-match interview at Molineux was disrupted by the appearance of Palmer, just as our head coach was discussing the England international’s brilliant hat-trick performance against Wolves.
‘I’ve seen the video with Cole, it was mad because I literally said his name, looked up and his face was just staring at me, that’s a natural thing’ Rosenior explained with a smile.
It was put to the Chelsea boss that the humorous moment was a sign of the relationship he’s built with his players during his first month working with the squad.
‘I think they’re getting to know me better and better, and know my staff,’ he replied. ‘I think I’m getting to know them better and better.
‘When I walked in here people asked if players like Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo would respect me.
‘They’re great people, they’re normal people who love doing what they do, with a lack of ego, with a huge humility, who want to improve.’
It’s the fact that his squad are people first and footballers second that Rosenior chose to highlight, even if his primary aim in understanding the personalities within his squad is to get them playing well and winning games consistently.
Our results suggest his approach is working well. ‘They’re people,’ he reiterated. ‘I’ve tried to get to know them as best I can, not to be their friend, just to get the best out of them. That’s the way that I work.
‘The most important thing for me is I have to get the best performance I can out of each individual in the team.
‘Everybody does it in their own way. My way is to speak to them, try to get to know them. Some of them enjoy that, some of them want nothing to do with it. That’s absolutely fine. But it’s all about performance and winning games of football.’
Another good performance and a fifth consecutive Premier League win would certainly keep the smile on Rosenior and his players’ faces when we host Leeds United at Stamford Bridge tonight.
We return to Stamford Bridge on Tuesday evening for our clash against Leeds. With general admission tickets sold out, Club Chelsea is your only way to watch the action live. Seat-only tickets start from £210 per person (inc. VAT) – book now by clicking here!
