Chelsea has decided who will captain the squad for their Premier League match against Fulham on Wednesday. Enzo Maresca, who departed the Blues on New Year’s Day after 18 months, is now being replaced by a new head coach.
Calum McFarlane, the head coach of Chelsea Under-21s, took command of the team’s match against Manchester City. Enzo Fernandez’s stoppage-time equaliser gave the Blues a draw at the Etihad Stadium.
McFarlane acknowledged after the game that it was unclear if he would be in charge of the Fulham game at Craven Cottage, depending on if Chelsea was able to announce their new appointment.
Liam Rosenior of BlueCo partner club RC Strasbourg is scheduled to make that appointment. As negotiations moved closer to a deal, Rosenior took a plane to London on Sunday night and spoke with the Chelsea management on Monday.
Rosenior’s debut game will probably be against Charlton Athletic on Saturday night in the FA Cup, since his hiring will not allow him to lead Chelsea against Fulham.
Calum McFarlane to take charge for Fulham game
Prior to the Fulham match on Tuesday at 12 p.m., McFarlane conducts Chelsea’s pre-match news conference. Chelsea is reportedly getting ready for its FA Cup encounter against Charlton Athletic on Saturday, which will be Rosenior’s first game as manager. It is highly anticipated that he will be selected in time to oversee that game.
Rosenior is set to say his goodbyes before taking over at Stamford Bridge at a news conference in Strasbourg, which is expected to take place on Tuesday morning. Rosenior will not sign a contract at Chelsea until their own appropriate successor is identified, according to insiders at the French club, and Strasbourg is narrowing down a shortlist of three candidates to replace him.
The West Londoners will play Arsenal in the League Cup semifinals before facing Brentford in January. After that, they travel to Crystal Palace and host Pafos before finishing the month with a home league match against West Ham and a final Champions League trip to Napoli.
