'Liam Rosenior has to' – Paul Merson urges Chelsea boss to stop starting two players

Liam Rosenior needs to stop starting Andrey Santos and Romeo Lavia, and get Enzo Fernandez back alongside Moises Caicedo according to Paul Merson.

The 41-year-old has been under growing pressure following a run of four defeats in a row in all competitions, and the manner of some of the defeats has been a concern.

The international break arguably came at a good time for Rosenior, who’s had two weeks to reflect on what’s gone wrong and how he can rectify it.

Paul Merson urges Liam Rosenior to not start Lavia and Santos

Despite the break, Rosenior will face a tough press conference on Friday ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup quarter final against Port Vale.

He will almost certainly face questions about Enzo Fernandez and Marc Cucurella who were both vocal over the international break. 

It’s good for Chelsea they return with a favourable fixture, but the spotlight will be right back on Rosenior, and he really can’t afford to lose this one.

With a whole week to prepare for next weekend’s game against Manchester City, there’s no excuse not to field a strong line-up, and Merson has shared his thoughts on what he’d do.

“Except for Joao Pedro, none of the big players at Chelsea have been performing well in recent weeks,” he told Sportskeeda.

“I like Romeo Lavia, he’s a good player and so is Andrey Santos. But Liam Rosenior has to get back to playing Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez in midfield with Cole Palmer as the number ten.”

Cole Palmer struggled over the international break, and despite a positive cameo from the bench against Uruguay he really struggled against Japan.

The English media weren’t impressed with his performance, and barring an exceptional end to the season he’s unlikely to start for England at the World Cup.