{"id":1477,"date":"2026-04-27T19:13:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T19:13:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=1477"},"modified":"2026-04-27T19:13:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T19:13:15","slug":"calum-mcfarlane-embarrasses-liam-rosenior-as-chelsea-beat-leeds-united","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/?p=1477","title":{"rendered":"Calum McFarlane embarrasses Liam Rosenior as Chelsea beat Leeds United"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"post-365273\">\n<div class=\"article-follow\">\n<div class=\"article-sharing google-follow\">  <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"28\" height=\"28\" src=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/wp-content\/themes\/grv-media\/img\/google-discover.svg\" alt=\"\"\/> <span>Add as preferred source on Google<\/span>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>The FA Cup final awaits Chelsea after the Blues managed to surpass an in-form, well-drilled Leeds United side at Wembley on Sunday afternoon, and Calum McFarlane deserves praise.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Going into the game, Chelsea fans will have been concerned about their side\u2019s chances. The Blues had gone five Premier League games without scoring, losing all five, and had sacked their manager.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-grvmedia-grv-video GRVMultiVideo\"\/>\n<p>Liam Rosenior\u2019s stint as Chelsea manager ended with a whopping 12 losses in 23 games, despite a decent start in which the former Hull and Strasbourg manager picked up six wins in his first seven matches.<\/p>\n<section class=\"grv-talking-point\" data-trigger=\"vue-sidebar\" data-story-id=\"9a7c0191-1ed6-4737-96a1-a810b7ee60a2\" data-story-name=\"Chelsea vs Leeds United\" data-comment-id=\"be3d1f48-9bb9-40d0-aac8-6bf687168de3\" data-story-slug=\"chelsea-vs-leeds-united\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__inner\">\n<header class=\"grv-talking-point__header\">  <\/header>\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__content\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__cta\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__title-wrap\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__title-content\">\n<h3 class=\"grv-talking-point__title\">DISCUSS: Sanchez should be Chelsea\u2019s no.1 next season\u2026<\/h3>\n<p class=\"grv-talking-point__subtitle\">Calum McFarlane is a big fan.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__embed\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 991px) 100vw, 800px\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/TWO-LINE-quote-graphic-1-1-819x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-365275\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/TWO-LINE-quote-graphic-1-1-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/TWO-LINE-quote-graphic-1-1-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/TWO-LINE-quote-graphic-1-1-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/TWO-LINE-quote-graphic-1-1-912x1140.png 912w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/TWO-LINE-quote-graphic-1-1-600x750.png 600w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/TWO-LINE-quote-graphic-1-1.png 1080w\"\/><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p>Despite that, Calum McFarlane managed to guide his side to a 1-0 win over Leeds at Wembley. Typically, it was Enzo Fernandez that scored the only goal of the game \u2013 the man Rosenior banned while manager.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-calum-mcfarlane-embarrasses-liam-rosenior-in-one-key-area\">Calum McFarlane embarrasses Liam Rosenior in one key area<\/h2>\n<p>Not only did Rosenior lose 12 of his 23 games in all competitions, but the Englishman could only manage four clean sheets. Two of those came against lower opposition in the FA Cup: Port Vale and Hull City.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"713\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 991px) 100vw, 800px\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2273228249-1024x713.jpg\" alt=\"Calum McFarlane, Interim Manager of Chelsea, looks on\" class=\"wp-image-365237\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2273228249-1024x713.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2273228249-300x209.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2273228249-768x535.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2273228249-1536x1070.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2273228249-1140x794.jpg 1140w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2273228249-750x522.jpg 750w\"\/><\/div><figcaption title=\"LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 26: Calum McFarlane, Interim Manager of Chelsea, looks on during the Emirates FA Cup Semi Final match between Chelsea and Leeds United at Wembley Stadium on April 26, 2026 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan - The FA\/The FA via Getty Images)\">Photo by Michael Regan \u2013 The FA\/The FA via Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Chelsea conceded 38 goals during Rosenior\u2019s spell, more than 1.5 a game. As long as that continued, Rosenior was never going to be a success. It meant Chelsea would have to score two or more per game.<\/p>\n<p>But in his first game back as caretaker manager, McFarlane managed to do what Rosenior failed to do on 19 occasions in charge. A superb clean sheet, which his players fought hard for against a good Leeds side.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-does-mcfarlane-have-any-chance-of-the-permanent-chelsea-job\">Does McFarlane have any chance of the permanent Chelsea job?<\/h2>\n<p>It feels incredibly unlikely that McFarlane will be given the chance to lead Chelsea beyond the remaining five games of the season. Chelsea have added another fixture to the calendar, the FA Cup final.<\/p>\n<section class=\"grv-talking-point\" data-trigger=\"vue-sidebar\" data-story-id=\"9a7c0191-1ed6-4737-96a1-a810b7ee60a2\" data-story-name=\"Chelsea vs Leeds United\" data-comment-id=\"63d3ad84-6f30-4618-afec-da32a0fb4fbc\" data-story-slug=\"chelsea-vs-leeds-united\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__inner\">\n<header class=\"grv-talking-point__header\">  <\/header>\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__content\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__cta\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__title-wrap\">\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__title-content\">\n<h3 class=\"grv-talking-point__title\">Chelsea\u2019s player ratings v Leeds: Do YOU agree?<\/h3>\n<p class=\"grv-talking-point__subtitle\">Gusto and Sanchez excellent!<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"grv-talking-point__embed\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"819\" height=\"1024\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 991px) 100vw, 800px\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/player-ratings-1-1-819x1024.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-365243\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/player-ratings-1-1-819x1024.png 819w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/player-ratings-1-1-240x300.png 240w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/player-ratings-1-1-768x960.png 768w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/player-ratings-1-1-912x1140.png 912w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/player-ratings-1-1-600x750.png 600w, https:\/\/cdn1.thechelseachronicle.com\/uploads\/17\/2026\/04\/player-ratings-1-1.png 1080w\"\/><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p>But should McFarlane guide Chelsea to four wins and secure European football of some description come the end of the season, and combine that with an FA Cup trophy, fans may start to consider McFarlane.<\/p>\n<p>One thing is for sure. Chelsea, on Sunday, looked much more organised, much more dogged and ready to fight than they did in the last few weeks under Rosenior. A solid win and a great start for McFarlane.<\/p>\n<p>Next up for Chelsea is a return to Stamford Bridge and a clash against relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest, who smashed Sunderland 5-0 away from home last time out. Another tricky game for McFarlane.<\/p>\n<div class=\"see-more-wrapper lazy see-more-open see-more-blank extra-content\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.thechelseachronicle.com\/analysis\/calum-mcfarlane-embarrasses-liam-rosenior-as-chelsea-beat-leeds-united\/none\" data-type=\"subscribe\">\n<div class=\"see-more subscribe\">\n<figure class=\"newsletter\">\n<div><svg class=\"loading\" width=\"118\" height=\"36\" viewbox=\"0 0 118 36\"><use href=\"#dots-svg\"\/><\/svg><\/p>\n<div class=\"signup\"><span class=\"hf\">Join Our Newsletter<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Receive a digest of our best Chelsea content each week direct to your mailbox<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><script>grvLoadAnalytics = () => {(function(d,s,i){var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)(0),j=d.createElement(s);j.async=true;j.src=\"https:\/\/www.googletagmanager.com\/gtag\/js?id=\"+i;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(document,'script','G-E7VRWQHDP6');(function(d,s,i){if(!\/callback=in\/.test(window.location.search)){var e=d.createElement(s);var n=d.getElementsByTagName(s)(0);e.type=\"text\/javascript\";e.async=true;e.src=\"https:\/\/static.chartbeat.com\/js\/chartbeat.js\";n.parentNode.insertBefore(e,n);}})(document,\"script\",\"G-E7VRWQHDP6\");(function(){let s=document.createElement(\"script\");s.async=true;s.dataset.domain=\"thechelseachronicle.com\/MFj4XQ\";s.src=\"https:\/\/api.publytics.net\/js\/script.manual.ping.min.js\";document.getElementsByTagName(\"head\")(0).appendChild(s);})();if(!\/callback=in\/.test(window.location.search)){setTimeout(function(){!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';n.queue=();t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)(0);s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,document,'script','https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');fbq('init','663509325503632');fbq('track','PageView');fbq('track','ViewContent',{content_name:'Calum McFarlane embarrasses Liam Rosenior as Chelsea beat Leeds United',content_category:'Analysis',content_ids:(365273,\"calum-mcfarlane\",\"liam-rosenior\"),content_type:'post',});},3000);}}<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Add as preferred source on Google The FA Cup final awaits Chelsea after the Blues&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1478,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1477","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\/1477","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=1477"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1477\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1478"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1477"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1477"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/playball.com.ng\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1477"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}