'I spent an hour with Liam Rosenior and Wayne Rooney was right about new Chelsea boss'

Liam Rosenior laid many of the foundations to his coaching career during his time as the assistant to Wayne Rooney at Derby County

Robert Sanchez will be thrown back under the spotlight when Liam Rosenior takes the reins at Chelsea. The new Blues boss will get his first look at the 28-year-old shot-stopper when Calum McFarlane's side lock horns with Fulham at Craven Cottage.

Rosenior will be in the stands on Wednesday before taking his first training session on Thursday. He will then make his debut as the new head coach on Saturday when Charlton Athletic host Chelsea at The Valley in the FA Cup third round.

Sanchez will be particularly eager to make a good first impression, with Rosenior known to encourage his goalkeepers to play out from the back. The 41-year-old first deployed this tactic at a senior level during his tenure at Derby County, initially as an assistant to Wayne Rooney and subsequently as caretaker manager.

Rosenior developed his philosophy at Hull City before taking his talents to Strasbourg, where he faced some of the best teams in Europe. During his time in France, the Englishman became renowned for essentially using his goalkeeper as a third centre-half.

He'll likely do the same at Chelsea, and Sanchez will quickly be thrown under the spotlight. Rosenior will raise eyebrows, as well as the blood pressure of supporters, but his ideas are trialled and tested up and down the football pyramid.

So, with that being said, football.london has spoken to Leigh Curtis, who covers Derby County for The Derby Telegraph, to get an expert's opinion on the new Chelsea boss.

Rosenior wants to build relationships on and off the pitch

"Liam is an exceptionally bright coach, a very humble and family-oriented individual. He was good to me during his time at Derby, and I remember going to see him just after he took over for a chat inside his office at the club's training ground.

"I spent about an hour in his company, and he was so engaging, articulate, and he was just very down to earth. He was more than happy for me to go and watch training, and you could see from watching him that his methods and ideas were way above the level he was at, given Derby were in League One at the time.

"He was very much a 4-2-3-1 man at Derby, where he wanted his teams to play out from the back, and there was a huge emphasis on the goalkeeper acting almost like a third centre-back when they had the ball.

"He encouraged flair and for the players to express themselves. Training was never dull, but an education. And I think if you asked any player at Derby during that time, they will all say they loved his sessions."

Rooney helped Rosenior shape his ideas at Derby County

"Rooney was always viewed as the man-manager at Derby. When he spoke, you listened. He carried the gravitas obviously owed to what was a stellar career for both club and country.

"Liam was seen as the brains who put it all together on the training pitch, so it was a very good partnership. You knew there was always going to come a point in time when Liam wanted to seek his own path, which is what ended up happening when he landed the interim job at Derby.

"Rooney's comments did not surprise me in the slightest. Those two had a very good relationship and worked well together."

Rosenior knows how to engage players, staff, and journalists

"He was very methodical, with no ego, and given that he is still young in management, he is not far removed from understanding what makes today's players tick.

"One of the hardest battles managers face today is ensuring you keep the dressing room onside. Being a disciplinarian doesn't work. Being aloof doesn't work. He wanted to bring a Premier League style of play to Derby, where the emphasis was on playing through the thirds.

"I found him great to deal with. He was always honest, and what I liked about him was that if you had a tactical question, he would always go to great lengths to try to explain it to you rather than fob you off.

"He wants you to understand what he was trying to do. I am delighted for him to get this opportunity, and fair play to Chelsea for not jumping on the merry-go-round. I hope he thrives in that role."

Rosenior wants to play 'exciting attacking football'

"I wouldn't say there were worries, but he had principles that, like all managers, he lived and died by. The goalkeeper being able to play out from the back was one area that certainly caused a few concerns among the fans.

"But he never wanted to change that and always said that if it ended up costing the team a goal, then he was adamant he wanted the blame rather than the players. What I would say is that while he wanted to bring that exciting attacking football to Derby, his ideas were perhaps too great for the level and quality of players he had at his disposal.

"You have to remember he was working with a squad that was put together in about four weeks after Derby came out of administration. Derby also didn't score or win an away game after he took over although there were some games, like Fleetwood away, when they should have clinched a victory.

"The only reason Derby saw fit to let him go was because they wanted somebody with experience of getting them out of League One, and so they turned to Paul Warne, who ended up winning automatic promotion.

"Had Derby been in the Championship when Rosenior was handed the reins, they would have kept him."

Delap will thrive under Rosenior at Chelsea

"Rosenior obviously worked with Liam Delap at Hull City, and I think he'll thrive under him and will understand immediately what he wants."

Rosenior will put Sanchez under the microscope

"He'll give everybody a chance to prove their worth, but the goalkeeper will be something that will be very important to him. They have to be exceptionally good with their feet.

"That will be an immediate test for Robert Sanchez who will have to prove very quickly that he is capable of being that goalkeeper who can join in with the build-up play that he insists on.

"I can see that immediately being an area that Rosenior will have his eye on particularly as at Derby, Hull and Strasbourg, the goalkeeper was crucial to his philosophy."