It will take more than a thumping FA Cup quarter-final victory over the worst team in League One to ignite Chelsea’s season as it enters the defining stretch. This was, at least, a step in the right direction. Or, perhaps, it was just good for the club to avoid any further chaos.
The occasion was framed by Liam Rosenior’s decision to ban his vice-captain, Enzo Fernández, for the game and Chelsea’s next one, which is here against Manchester City in the Premier League next Sunday. The manager felt he had to act after Fernández’s none-too-subtle message to Real Madrid during the international break. Basically, he is bang up for joining them.
It was the last thing Rosenior needed after a run of four straight defeats, the two against Paris Saint-Germain adding up to an 8-2 aggregate loss in the Champions League last 16. The others against Newcastle and Everton in the league were just as damaging as the club fights to finish in the top five. Anybody who has seen their most recent accounts knows the importance of a return to the Champions League.
There is an impossible-to-ignore undercurrent of unhappiness around Chelsea and Rosenior has felt the burn of the spotlight. Yet he was able to enjoy this procession that has kept alive the club’s hopes of silverware.
