We’re six matches into the Liam Rosenier era at Chelsea, and so far, so good. He has won five of those matches, with the only loss coming against current league leaders Arsenal when the Blues still gave a good account of themselves, and they’ve done this without Cole Palmer for the most part. The English midfielder has been limited to only 14 appearances in all competitions this season while dealing with various injuries.
How to watch Chelsea vs. West Ham United, odds
- Date: Saturday, Jan. 31 | Time: 12:30 p.m.
- Location: Stamford Bridge — London
- TV: USA
- Odds: Chelsea -200; Draw +350; West Ham United +500
As the Blues learned during the Club World Cup, they will go as far as Palmer can take them, but under Rosenior, that could be changing. Enzo Fernandez has gotten more of a run as an attacking midfielder, while Moises Caicedo has also found his own shooting boots. Questions still remain about who the best striker is for the Blues at this stage of the season, but in Palmer’s absence, others have been able to find their attacking form, which is only a good thing.
Palmer did return as Chelsea clinched a top eight spot in the Champions League league phase, and it was a big one. He netted two assists, both to Joao Pedro, which is something else that should be reminiscent of Chelsea’s trophy-winning summer. The Premier League title may be out of reach, but the Blues are contenders for the UCL crown and can climb above Manchester United into the top four of the table.
In their six matches under Rosenior, Chelsea have scored 16 goals while conceding six goals. That alone will get the job done, as while Rosenior is known as a more defensive manager, the attack isn’t suffering under his leadership. Next up, the Blues will host a London derby where they face a resurgent West Ham United.
The Hammers may still be in the relegation zone, five points off of safety but they’ve managed to win their last two games as Nuno Espirito Santo is pulling the side out of their slump. With Chelsea coming off a win away from home, facing Napoli, this is a perfect let down spot for them, and these are the kind of matches where their mentality under Rosenior will be tested. A loss to West Ham won’t hurt the season in any way, but it’s the kind of result that would bring in questions of whether we’re just seeing a new manager bounce or true changes at Chelsea.
All signs are pointing to the latter right now, and with the second legs of the EFL Cup semifinal coming around the corner on Tuesday (Catch the action on Paramount+), they’ll want to keep the good form going into their rematch away from Arsenal. Due to that match coming in short succession, this isn’t a time where it makes sense to start Palmer when he can shake off more rust but as the stakes get higher in the season, Chelsea will need him firing on all cylinders.
