It’s a new era at Stamford Bridge and the Blues have taken a big bet by bringing in English manager Liam Rosenior to lead the club. Only 41, this is a tall task for Rosenior to come from Strasbourg to Chelsea, but history is also in his favor. Chelsea have twice won the Champions League in their history, lifting the trophy in 2012 and 2021. Each time, Chelsea changed their manager midseason and ended up winning the competition. With Rosenior replacing Enzo Maresca, the Blues are looking to secure a top-eight place in the league phase and direct passage to the round of 16 as they host former player David Luiz and Pafos on Wednesday.

How to watch Chelsea vs. Pafos odds

• Date: Wednesday, Jan. 21 | Time: 3 p.m. ET
• Location: Stamford Bridge — London
• Live stream: Paramount+
• Odds: Chelsea -699; Draw +700; Pafos +1600

Plenty is being said about Rosenior’s experience, but in European soccer, he brings the same level of experience as Maresca, who led Chelsea to a Europa Conference League title and glory at the Club World Cup. Rosenior was managing Strasbourg in the Conference League this season before taking over the Blues, and despite only managing two matches so far, he was able to keep Chelsea competitive, facing Arsenal in a League Cup defeat before engineering a shutout victory over Brentford. But he’s aware that, despite this being the first match that he’ll manage in the Champions League, not much changes preparation-wise.

“I’m proud to be here [managing in the Champions League]. Like I’ve said before, my focus is on winning the game. My focus is on success here, so I’m preparing a game like we would any other game to make sure we put in the best performance to give us a chance of winning the game,” Rosenior said in his pre-match press conference.

A player who has already been key for the new manager is Argentine midfielder Enzo Fernández. He has a goal and two assists in two matches under Rosenior and seems set to be a central figure in what Chelsea will do moving forward, and Rosenior expressed how important Fernandez is to him. That should come as no surprise when Fernandez has been able to move from being a defensive midfielder to being a box-to-box midfielder or operate as a No. 10, all with amazing effectiveness. Along with Declan Rice and Bruno Guimaraes, Fernandez is one of the most well-rounded midfielders in the Premier League and in the world. If he can combine well with Cole Palmer down the stretch, the Blues can absolutely become a dark-horse contender to win this competition. 

Rosenior teams have a reputation of being hard to break down defensively, so with his system coming into play, Chelsea just need a set attack that can make things happen. With Fernendez’s versatility, they have a leg up. While the Blues will need to prove that they can take down teams like Arsenal in the future, showing that they’re competitive now means there is another gear that Rosenior can help them unlock, but it all begins with defeating Pafos on Wednesday.