'Lethargic' - Rosenior makes honest admission on Chelsea trio who struggled vs West Ham
In this story:
Chelsea head coach Liam Rosenior has come to the defence of the three players who were hooked at half-time for poor performances against West Ham.
Despite the obvious positives from the incredible 3-2 comeback win over West Ham at Stamford Bridge, there were still a lot of points to address for Chelsea.
The first-half performance was so bad that Rosenior had to make three tactical substitutions at half-time to save the game.
It worked, obviously, but this also puts a question mark over Chelsea's squad depth.
Benoit Badiashile, Jorrel Hato, and Alejandro Garnacho made the starting line-up but Rosenior eventually had to rely on Wesley Fofana, Marc Cucurella, and Joao Pedro, who needed rest.
⬅️ Badiashile, Hato, Garnacho
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) January 31, 2026
➡️ Fofana, Cucurella, Joao Pedro
🔵 0-2 ⚒️ [46] #CFC | #CHEWHU pic.twitter.com/n9OXApOdYJ
However, Rosenior refused to point his finger at the trio for the first-half problems.
"I'm learning about this group very quickly. I've been here three and a half weeks, we've played seven games," the Chelsea head coach told Sky Sports after the game.
"I've said I'm going to give them all a chance. Hato's an outstanding player, Badiashile's an outstanding player, so's Garnacho.
"It wasn't about them individually but our functionality in the first half wasn't there.
"You can see the fight, energy, and spirit in the group, which they all have. To come back, like we did in Napoli, shows me a lot of really positive things."
In his post-match press conference, Rosenior reiterated his point that the first half was a collective responsibility.
"Being honest, individually and collectively, the first half was nowhere near the level it needed to be," he admitted.
"The individuals came off, and people will look at that, but it was a collective poor performance in the first half.
"It was lethargic in the first half but the second half was everything I wanted to see."
Gerry Crisandy is a freelance writer who has covered Chelsea for many years. His work has been published on The Chelsea Chronicle and Pride of London. He grew up idolising Michael Ballack and is a firm believer in expected goals.