Englishman Liam Rosenior’s beginning to life as coach of Strasbourg has been impressive enough to start winning over fans unhappy about the direction being taken by the French club under the stewardship of the BlueCo consortium which runs Chelsea.
Strasbourg were outstanding in beating Marseille 1-0 last weekend, a result which left them with just one defeat in their first six games of the Ligue 1 campaign.
That match at the Stade de la Meinau began with home supporters staying silent for the first 15 minutes in protest against BlueCo.
The silence is a way of expressing their discontent at seeing one of France’s most popular outfits become part of a multi-club model since the takeover.
BlueCo, led notably by Todd Boehly, purchased Chelsea in 2022 and acquired Strasbourg last year.
The side from Alsace finished 13th in Ligue 1 last season before seeing their preparations for this campaign seemingly thrown into disarray when coach Patrick Vieira left in July.
Fans were unconvinced when the club then appointed Rosenior, the 40-year-old Englishman who was sacked by second-tier Hull City at the end of last season after they missed out on a play-off place.
But Rosenior was highly regarded in England and was nominated for the Championship manager of the season award. He was even linked with the job at his old club Brighton following the departure of Roberto De Zerbi.
Last Sunday he got the better of new Marseille coach De Zerbi, confirming his good start in a country where he does not yet speak the language.
“We have only been working together for maybe two, two and a half months, so I have to give the players so much credit for the information they are taking in, because there are small details that we change for each game,” Rosenior said after that match.
His team’s high-energy game, with man-to-man marking across the pitch, caught the eye.
“For a young group to show the levels of experience and quality that they did, it makes me very proud of them.”
Strasbourg certainly have a young side, with all 10 starting outfield players against Marseille aged 22 or under. Goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic was the elder statesman at 24.
Petrovic is also one of three members of the Strasbourg squad on loan from Chelsea, along with Brazilian midfielder Andrey Santos and American full-back Caleb Wiley.
In addition, Diego Moreira, the 20-year-old Portuguese youth international, joined from the London club on a permanent transfer and got the winner against Marseille.
“It is a learning process for these players. I believe in them. I don’t talk about age,” said Rosenior, who is benefiting from BlueCo’s 55 million-euro ($60.6m) summer spending spree.
“They are playing with a fearlessness and a bravery that I love, and they are learning as they go, and that is a very, very good thing for us.”
Fans are highly sceptical about BlueCo’s long-term vision, but the signs are that this could be a successful season as Strasbourg prepare to host Lens on Sunday.
Player to watch: Ayyoub Bouaddi
The Lille midfielder was already the youngest player ever to appear in a UEFA club competition game when he took to the field aged 16 years and three days last season.
On Wednesday he was outstanding on his 17th birthday as Lille beat Real Madrid in the Champions League.
“He showed all his potential, all the talent he has. We know what he is capable of,” said coach Bruno Genesio of the France Under-18 international, who has a contract to 2027.
Key stats
3 – Three members of Strasbourg’s starting line-up against Marseille last weekend were signed from Chelsea
27 – Jonathan David has 27 goals in 36 games this calendar year for Lille
27 – Paris Saint-Germain are unbeaten in 27 away Ligue 1 games since February 2023, with 21 wins and six draws in that time
Fixtures (times GMT)
Friday
Marseille v Angers (1845)
Saturday
Saint-Etienne v Auxerre (1500), Lille v Toulouse (1700), Rennes v Monaco (1900)
Sunday
Lyon v Nantes (1300), Rennes v Montpellier, Strasbourg v Lens, Brest v Le Havre (all 1500), Nice v Paris Saint-Germain (1845)
