Liam Rosenior comments send clear message to Chelsea dressing room as first job identified

Strasbourg boss Liam Rosenior is being linked with the Chelsea job after the club decided to sack Enzo Maresca following a poor run of form

Chelsea's potential next head coach, Liam Rosenior, has already told the Blues how he would run their dressing room. The club confirmed on Thursday that they have parted ways with head coach Enzo Maresca.

The Italian has left less than six months after winning the Club World Cup and Conference League at the end of his first season at Stamford Bridge. Maresca also guided Chelsea back into the Champions League, although, sitting 13th in the league phase, they have work to do if they are to avoid a two-legged play-off tie.

And the search for Maresca's successor in west London is now well underway, with Strasbourg boss Rosenior among the early leading candidates to take over. Football.london understands the Blues hierarchy have been left hugely impressed by the work the 41-year-old has done since taking over at partner club Strasbourg.

• Next Chelsea manager decision made as Liam Rosenior, Cesc Fabregas and Roberto De Zerbi linked
• Five next Chelsea manager contenders as Enzo Maresca sacked and favourite emerges

Rosenior has previously opened up to The Times on his management style - revealing clues over how he would manage the egos at Chelsea if he got the top job.

He said: “We don’t have many rules. I don’t set curfews. I haven’t fined a player since I’ve been at the club.

“The first thing I said to the group is, ‘If you’re trustworthy and you live the right way, then you’re going to be a part of this. If you don’t, you won’t be.’ In France, it’s very structured. Culturally, that was a huge thing at the time.

“We went on a pre-season trip to Germany in my first week. I set them no rules. A group of 19 and 20-year-olds. Everyone thought, ‘This guy is mad.’ The woman who ran the hotel said to me and Kalifa (Cissé, Rosenior’s assistant) that she had never come across such a well-behaved group of lads.

“I have to earn the players’ respect. As a manager, the reality of football now is I’m not in control. The players are in control.

"If I treat them badly, phone call to the agent, agent calls the club, manager’s done — ‘Lost the dressing room.’ But if you look after your people, they will look after you. That’s the way that we work here. And that’s why everyone buys in.”

Rosenior, who is a known admirer of Sir Alex Ferguson's, also explained his first job when he arrives at a new club - sharing the belief of some of football's greatest managers that “building connections” is vital.

He added: “Before you even talk about tactics, philosophies or systems, you need to have a group of guys that want to fight for you.

"Wherever I go, my first job is to create a culture where people enjoy what they do, but they’re connected to each other and to what we do.”

Elsewhere, Football.london understands that Cesc Fabregas is not an option for Chelsea. The former Blues midfielder has impressed with Serie A side Como, but is not a managerial target at present.

Marseille boss and former Brighton manager Roberto De Zerbi is also not in the running, despite speculation linking him with the club, while former captain John Terry is also not being considered.