Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior has passionately defended his decision to start Filip Jørgensen in goal, despite the keeper’s costly error in the 5-2 thrashing at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday.
Chelsea Players Slam Jørgensen on Pitch, but Rosenior Backs His Man
In a surprise move, Rosenior opted to bench usual first-choice Robert Sánchez and hand the gloves to Jørgensen.
The decision backfired dramatically when the Denmark international made a mess of a routine save, allowing PSG to take a 3-2 lead and shift the momentum entirely.
The error visibly frustrated Chelsea’s midfielders. Enzo Fernández threw the ball at Jørgensen in disgust, while Moisés Caicedo also let his anger show on the pitch.
However, Rosenior refused to throw his player under the bus after the final whistle.
“Sánchez or Jørgensen? They have different qualities,” Rosenior told reporters.
“Rob is outstanding from crosses and a brilliant shot-stopper. Filip has amazing qualities too.
One of the reasons we won at Aston Villa was because we were so calm in possession with him in goal.”
He added, “But players sometimes make mistakes. Filip isn’t the first one to make a mistake—that is part of football. He has put his hands up in the dressing room.
As for the fourth goal from [Khvicha] Kvaratskhelia, that was an unbelievable strike. No keeper in the world can get that.”
Despite hanging in the tie for most of the night, Chelsea collapsed dramatically in the final 16 minutes.
European champions PSG ran riot with three late goals, turning a potential 2-2 draw into a commanding advantage ahead of next Tuesday’s second leg at Stamford Bridge.
Rosenior took responsibility for the late capitulation but admitted his side lacked the composure to handle the pressure.
“The last 15-20 minutes were crazy, but that is on me,” Rosenior said.
“We need to be better when setbacks happen. We have to be calm and collected, and that didn’t happen.
It is painful because we were in the tie for 75 minutes. We shot ourselves in the foot.”
Acknowledging the quality of the opposition, Rosenior noted that the Premier League does not prepare teams for talents like Ousmane Dembélé or Kvaratskhelia. Still, he insists the tie is not dead.
“Three goals makes it very difficult now, but not impossible,” he said.
