{"id":1053,"date":"2026-04-26T14:23:57","date_gmt":"2026-04-26T14:23:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=1053"},"modified":"2026-04-26T14:23:57","modified_gmt":"2026-04-26T14:23:57","slug":"chelseas-interim-manager-profiled-ahead-of-fa-cup-semi-final-vs-leeds-football-sport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=1053","title":{"rendered":"Chelsea&#8217;s interim manager profiled ahead of FA Cup semi-final vs Leeds | Football | Sport"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-type=\"article-body\">\n<div class=\"clearfix hR new-style\">\n<div class=\"photo changeSpace\">\n<p class=\"withoutCaption\"><picture><source type=\"image\/avif\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/1200x712\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.avif?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:10000px)\"><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/1200x712\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.webp?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:10000px)\"><source type=\"image\/jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/1200x712\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.jpg?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:10000px)\"><source type=\"image\/avif\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/674x400\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.avif?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:100000px)\"><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/674x400\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.webp?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:100000px)\"><source type=\"image\/jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/674x400\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.jpg?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:100000px)\"><source type=\"image\/avif\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/940x\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.avif?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:1200px)\"><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/940x\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.webp?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:1200px)\"><source type=\"image\/jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/940x\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.jpg?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen and (min-width:1200px)\"><source type=\"image\/avif\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/590x\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.avif?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen\"><source type=\"image\/webp\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/590x\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.webp?r=1777036572331\" media=\"screen\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"zoomEnabled\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/1200x712\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.jpg?r=1777036572331\" alt=\"Calum McFarlane.\" title=\"Calum McFarlane.\" width=\"590\" height=\"393\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"newsCaption\">Calum McFarlane will take charge at Wembley <span class=\"caption\">(Image: Getty)<\/span><span class=\"magnifier\" data-img=\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/67\/1200x712\/secondary\/Calum-McFarlane-6882637.jpg?r=1777036572331\"\/><\/span><\/div>\n<p> <!--googleoff: all--><\/p>\n<div class=\"affiliate-links\">  This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more<\/div>\n<p> <!--googleon: all--><\/p>\n<p><h3 class=\"subh\" id=\"Everything-you-need-to-know-about-Chelsea-interim-manager-75565515\" data-toc=\"0\">Everything you need to know about Chelsea interim manager<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"text-description\">\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Who is Chelsea&#8217;s interim boss?<\/strong> Calum McFarlane is currently serving as Chelsea&#8217;s interim head coach, having been appointed following Liam Rosenior&#8217;s sacking. This represents his second spell as caretaker this year, as the club pursues stability during a turbulent period.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Managerial record:<\/strong> His experience with the senior squad consists of two matches played during his earlier interim spell in January 2026. During that period, he secured an impressive 1-1 draw against Manchester City at the Etihad before enduring a narrow 2-1 defeat away at Fulham.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Time spent at Chelsea:<\/strong> McFarlane has been at Chelsea since July 2025, when he originally joined the club to oversee the Under-21 and Under-19 academy sides. He made a substantial impact in the youth setup, winning 11 of his 21 games and guiding the Under-19s to the summit of their UEFA Youth League group.<\/li>\n<li><strong>McFarlane&#8217;s tactical prowess:<\/strong> Prior to arriving at Stamford Bridge, McFarlane established a reputation as a &#8216;tactical obsessive&#8217; through various coaching roles at Manchester City and Southampton. Despite his limited senior-level experience, the 40-year-old is highly regarded by the Chelsea hierarchy for his meticulous match preparation. His ability to execute complex defensive plans was particularly praised after he claimed a point from Pep Guardiola earlier this season.<\/li>\n<li><strong>When will McFarlane be in the dugout?<\/strong> The FA Cup semi-final between Chelsea and Leeds United is set to get underway at 3pm on Sunday, April 26. This high-profile fixture at Wembley Stadium marks McFarlane&#8217;s third professional match at the helm of the first team.<\/li>\n<li><strong>UK TV channel:<\/strong> Supporters in the UK can watch the game live on TNT Sports 1, with football coverage starting at 2pm. This hour-long build-up will offer tactical insight and team news straight from the national stadium ahead of kick-off.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Live stream information:<\/strong> For those who prefer watching on digital platforms, the match will be accessible to stream via the HBO Max app. Subscribers can enjoy the same high-definition broadcast available on linear television across a range of compatible devices.<\/li>\n<li><strong>How to watch in the US:<\/strong> Supporters based in the United States can catch every moment of the FA Cup action by streaming the game live on HBO Max. Kick-off is scheduled for 10am ET (7am PT).<\/li>\n<li><strong>READ THE LATEST CHELSEA NEWS HERE: Three Liam Rosenior replacements Chelsea are pondering including Champions League finalist<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Calum McFarlane will take charge at Wembley (Image: Getty) This article contains affiliate links, we&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1054,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1053","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-chelsea"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1053","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1053"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1053\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1054"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1053"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1053"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1053"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}