09/01/2026

SPORTS FRIDAY | JAN 9, 2026

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LIAM ROSENIOR has delivered his first message to Chelsea’s players as the new Blues boss admitted he needs to “hit the ground running”. Rosenior was hired from French club Strasbourg on Tuesday to replace Enzo Maresca, who parted company with Chelsea last week after reported conflict with the Blues’ hierarchy. Rosenior earned plaudits for steering Strasbourg, who are in the same ownership group as Chelsea, into the Uefa Conference League via a seventh place finish in Ligue 1 last season. The 41-year-old, who agreed a six-year contract with Chelsea, had previously managed Hull before being sacked after missing out on the Championship play offs in 2024. His lack of top-level manage rial experience has been used by critics to question Chelsea’s deci sion to hire Rosenior. And the English coach, speak ing just before the Blues’ west London derby at Fulham on Wednesday, is well aware he must produce results quickly to satisfy Chelsea’s demanding owners. “Super excited. I can’t wait. As a young man I have always wanted to be a coach, I’ve talked about it a lot,” Rosenior told Sky Sports . “For this opportunity to come up at this stage of my career is great but my biggest focus is not about being Chelsea manager, it’s about being a winning Chelsea manager, and that is the message that I gave the players yesterday when I was fortunate enough to meet them for the first time. “We need to hit the ground running for the rest of the sea son.” Although Rosenior has spoken to his new squad for the first time, he was set to watch from the Craven Cottage stands rather than take charge of the Premier League clash. Chelsea’s Under-21 coach Calum McFarlane, who oversaw a 1-1 draw at Manchester City and lost to Fulham 2-1 yesterday as interim boss. Rosenior’s first game will come at second-tier Charlton in the FA Cup third round on Sunday (4am Malaysian time). “I flew in from Strasbourg yes terday morning, so it is a difficult time frame for me to get in the tactical work I want to get into to get the lads to give them the best possible chance to win. I’ve got full faith in Calum and the lads to win tonight,” he said. “The lads when I was working in Strasbourg were very suppor tive of me. We are very aligned in terms of recruitment, style of play. “That is why I was brought into the project to begin with. To be honest I never thought it would end up with me standing here in January as Chelsea manager but in life you never know what’s going to happen.” – AFP Rosenior looks to hit the ground running

Strasbourg offer too good to turn down: O’Neil GARY O’NEIL replaced Liam Rosenior as Strasbourg coach yesterday declaring that he had received other offers in the year he had been out of work but “none of them felt quite like this”. since I left Wolves,” O’Neil told reporters. “I’ve had the opportunity to go into other places, Premier League, places around the world, other places in England.

continuity of our sports project,” he added. Strasbourg fans called for Keller to leave his role due to Rosenior’s departure which followed the equally unpopular announcement club captain Emmanuel Emegha would head to Stamford Bridge next season. “It wasn’t the plan, it was wanted by no one, but once it happens it’s our job, we have to adapt, with always the same ambition, to go higher,” said Keller referring to Rosenior’s departure. “When you’re confronted with a coach that has the chance to go to the Premier League, at good clubs, if it’s Chelsea or elsewhere, it has to be on the table.” he added. – AFP

said. “I also come after Rosenior, who has done a very good job here. “From these foundations, it’s an opportunity for me that is fantastic, with a very high-quality team. I arrive at a football club that is only going in one direction, upwards, towards progression,” he added. O’Neil’s first game in charge of Strasbourg will be Sunday’s French Cup last 32 game at fourth-tier Avranches (1am Malaysian time). “I am very happy to welcome Gary O’Neil,” Strasbourg president Marc Keller said. “He is a demanding and recognised coach, with a modern approach to football that is fully part of the

“And none of them felt quite like this. That was what really gave me the draw to come to Strasbourg,”he added. O’Neil takes over with the Alsatians, who won their sole French title in 1979, in seventh place in Ligue 1 but without a win in the league since November 9. They are top of the Conference League table, having beaten the likes of Crystal Palace and Aberdeen. “I’m impressed by the progress that has been made in recent years,” O’Neil

Former Bournemouth and Wolves boss O’Neil heads to France after Rosenior left the modest Ligue 1 outfit on Tuesday for Premier League side Chelsea. The 42-year-old Englishman, whose playing career included long spells at Portsmouth and Middlesbrough and was capped at England under-21 level, said the approach from Strasbourg had pressed all the right buttons. “I’ve been out for 12 months now,

Storm in a tea cup for Frank … as pressure mounts on Spurs boss

Spurs players look dejected after their defeat to Bournemouth after their English Premier League match at Vitality Stadium yesterday. – REUTERSPIC

T HOMAS FRANK insisted he had no idea he drank from an Arsenal-branded cup during a “painful” 3-2 defeat against Bournemouth that piled pressure on the beleaguered Tottenham boss yesterday. Frank was pictured holding the cup with an Arsenal badge clearly visible while he stood on the touchline at the Vitality Stadium. Tottenham’s bitter north London rivals Arsenal were the previous visitors to Bournemouth, winning 3-2 last weekend, leading to suggestions the cup was left in the visitors’ dressing room. But the bizarre gaffe by the Dane sparked outrage from Tottenham fans on social media, leaving Frank with more awkward questions to answer following the latest wretched result of his troubled reign. “I definitely didn’t notice it,” Frank said. “I think it’s fair to say we’re not winning every single football match so it would be absolutely, completely stupid of me to take a cup from Arsenal. “They have been in the changing room the game

“I think it’s fair to say everyone involved in Tottenham, it’s a tough one to take today,” Frank said. “Hopefully everyone can see how hard we worked to get everything in the right direction. “Overall the performance was good, especially the second half, in a game where we deserved to get more. “That is extremely painful to be part of, so of course people are frustrated, that’s natural.” Semenyo, who was celebrating his 26th birthday, was given a standing ovation when he was substituted moments after his winner before being serenaded by Bournemouth supporters following the fairytale ending. “He deserved this moment; I’m happy football has given him this moment he will not forget,” Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola said. “It’s not easy to do what he has done because a lot of the players would have acted differently. He’s never found excuses.” – AFP

before us. It’s normal to take a cup, give me an espresso, I do that before every game, so I think actually it’s a little bit sad in football that I need to be asked a question about that. “We’re definitely going in the wrong direction if we need to be worry about me having a cup with a logo of another club. Of course I would never do that. That’s extremely stupid.” Joao Palhinha’s bicycle kick looked set to earn Frank a reprieve after first half goals from Bournemouth duo Evanilson and Eli Junior Kroupi overturned Mathys Tel’s early opener. But Antoine Semenyo, who is on the verge of a move to Manchester City, smashed home his 10th goal of the season in stoppage-time to push Frank closer to the sack just eight months after he arrived from Brentford. The loss left Tottenham with just two wins from their last 12 league games and prompted heated exchanges between fans and some of Frank’s players at fulltime.

SHORTS

have to translate that to major trophies,” he added. “Probably doing what we are doing now would have been enough (in 2004), but now it’s not, and we have to make the margins even bigger.” … and ‘sad’ to see Amorim sacked ARTETA said yesterday that he was “sad” to see rival boss Ruben Amorim sacked by Manchester United as he reflected on the brutal nature of their trade. United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe had previously suggested that Amorim would be given at least three years in

20 games. But the Spaniard said those stats matter little unless Arsenal go on to win the league. “No because ‘the Invincibles’ won a lot,” Arteta told his pre-match press conference on whether his side can be considered better than Arsenal’s last title winners. They won consistently, and they created a history and a legacy, and we have to do that.” The lone major piece of silverware won by Arsenal in six years under Arteta remains the 2020 FA Cup “There are a lot of stats, but in the last two or three years we have managed more points and more goals than ever before. But at the end, we

charge, comparing his position with that of Arteta. The Spaniard, appointed in 2019. endured a rocky start to his time in charge of Arsenal, but they now they are chasing their first English title in over 20 years. “I can only talk about what I have experienced and it’s always sad to see a colleague losing his job, obviously,” Arteta said. “We know where we are and I think you need support from the ownership, from your staff, from players. “At the end of the day, you need to win a lot of football matches if you want to stay in the job, and that’s the reality and the nature of our job.”

Arsenal must win trophies: Arteta ARSENAL MANAGER Mikel Arteta said the Premier League leaders must win trophies if they were to be remembered like the “Invincibles” side that last won the title for the Gunners in 2004. Arsene Wenger’s side romped to the title 22 years ago without losing a single league game. Arteta’s men, runners-up for the past three seasons, have two more points and four more goals than Wenger’s “Invincibles” managed after