“What I’ve learned in three months here, I probably wouldn’t have learned in England over five years,” Liam Rosenior says of his introduction to French football. A few months after his dismissal by Hull, the former defender became only the second Englishman to coach in France since the 1950s when he succeeded Patrick Vieira at Strasbourg in the summer.
In only the third role of his managerial career, Rosenior has taken an unconventional step at a club purchased by BlueCo, the consortium that bought Chelsea from Roman Abramovich, last summer. “It wasn’t really on my mind that I was an Englishman going abroad, it was just a really exciting project,” he says. For the time being, Rosenior’s assistant coach and former Reading teammate, Kalifa Cissé, serves as a translator during press conferences, while the former undergoes weekly intensive French lessons.
Given Strasbourg’s mix of local talent and young international imports, language has not proved too much of an issue in getting his ideas across to the team – who currently sit in seventh place in Ligue 1. “You have to use more energy with your body language,” Rosenior explains. “But the culture, the values, and even the sayings that we use are exactly the same as when I worked at Derby and Hull.”
Arsène Wenger’s name crops up a few times during this interview – both for his ties to the regional capital’s club, as well as for his work with young players at Arsenal. Rosenior’s own move across the Channel was not necessarily met with similar “Liam qui?” headlines in the French press, but his appointment nevertheless came as a surprise in Ligue 1 circles. “I’ve actually enjoyed the freedom of coaching in a different country,” he says. “Nobody has any preconceived idea of who you are.”
While the 40-year-old former Bristol City, Fulham, Reading, Hull and Brighton full-back is aware that he was a relative unknown on arrival he is reticent about actively looking to carve out a reputation for himself. “I don’t think of coaching as making a name for myself. It’s about improving the individual in order to improve the collective, to win games.”
Many of Le Racing’s first-team regulars are seasoned professionals, despite their young age. The 20-year-old club captain, Habib Diarra, a Senegal international who grew up in Alsace, was handed the armband this summer, at the dawn of his third campaign with the club. The Swedish summer signing Sebastian Nanasi, who has three goals and two assists already, made his professional debut at 15 and won four trophies with Malmö before leaving for France. He continued his good form in the last international break, scoring a double against Estonia. “We played his goals to the rest of the team today,” Rosenior beams, “and we did the same with Emanuel Emegha’s goal for the Dutch under- 21 team. We want to share each others’ successes.”
Strasbourg’s standout result of the season so far was a 1-0 win over Marseille at the end of September, a match which saw Rosenior inflict a first Ligue 1 defeat on Roberto De Zerbi. “I don’t see it as me beating De Zerbi,” Rosenior says. “It’s exciting to talk about tactical battles in the press. There are elements of that, but the most important thing is the work the players do on the training ground.”
Rosenior does, though, praise the Italian tactician as “one of the best in the world”, adding: “He’s influenced me in the way that I see the game, especially from his time at Brighton. I saw what he did with the players I’d played with, like Solly March and Lewis Dunk.
“When I watch Arsenal and the way they press – Roberto was doing that before with Brighton before Mikel Arteta was going man-for-man across the pitch. Certain coaches work at a level where they can influence other coaches, so to come up against him is something I won’t forget, and hopefully it will happen often in the future.”
The winning goal against Marseille came from the winger Diego Moreira, who exemplifies the positional flexibility of Rosenior’s squad. The Portugal youth international was deployed as a striker in his first start of the season, before being shifted to left-back, and scored his first professional goal from that position. “I don’t believe in pigeonholing players into positions,” says Rosenior. “Ismaël Doukouré, for example, has played at left-back, right-back, centre-back and in central midfield. I’m being given the confidence to try that, because the people above me believe in working this way.”
One effect of the Alsatians’ turnover in personnel – which has included several Chelsea loanees – has been a rejuvenation of the squad. One lineup in particular, against Montpellier back in August, was the first in French top-flight history in which all outfield players were under 23. “We’re the youngest team in Europe, so you have to accept that you have players who are going to be learning on the job,” Rosenior says. “My job is to accelerate that learning, and you can only do that with experience.”
He points to two matches in particular – their 4-3 defeat by Lyon and a 3-3 draw against Lille, both away from home, both of which saw Strasbourg take the lead before giving up points. “But if those two matches hadn’t happened, we would have had less of a chance of seeing out the Marseille win,” he goes on to say.
Rosenior is effectively now a member of the cohort of young tacticians who have taken Ligue 1 by storm, including his compatriot Will Still, as well as Luka Elsner at Reims. “I’m learning from these coaches as well,” he says, adding that Still, an Anglo-Belgian, who he recently faced, “has a very defined way of playing, which you could say is the polar opposite of what I do with the ball, but it’s still very effective”.
For Rosenior, his own youth is not necessarily the key to connecting with rising players – citing as counter examples Alex Ferguson and a certain local. “Arsène Wenger was a master at developing young players, even at an older age,” he says. “I want my players to enjoy coming in. I want them to be open. I want them to be vulnerable, and I allow myself to be vulnerable as well with them. From that, I think you can create really close connections with your group and you build trust, which is everything.”
On Saturday, Strasbourg travel to the champions, Paris Saint-Germain, who are unbeaten in Ligue 1. Not everyone in the stands is entirely won over, though. In particular, BlueCo’s arrival in June 2023 prompted protests from the club’s ultras, who have remained silent in the first 15 minutes of matches to express their disapproval of the sale. For the UB90 group, the takeover risks undermining the club’s identity and independence, in favour of the whims of the new American owners who could prioritise Chelsea.
The quiet demonstration has increasingly divided opinion among the Stade de la Meinau faithful, with many – including the manager himself – pointing out that the players themselves are affected by the lack of atmosphere. “The context is really important. This club has been under foreign ownership before and, to put it mildly, it didn’t go well,” concedes Rosenior, referring to the turbulent six-year period at the turn of the century during which IMG were in charge. A few years down the line, the club would be liquidated and sent down to the fifth tier.
“It’s understandable that fans who love this club would be wary of outside ownership,” Rosenior says, “but I think that they’re starting to see that it’s for the benefit of the club. To compete at this level, you need big investment, and I think this club is fortunate to have investors who don’t just think about being a flash in the pan and throw money at things, but want to build something here. I think the long-term plan is for the club to be consistently aiming for European football”.
Can PSG realistically be toppled? “In France, you need a lot of money and a lot of time to challenge them,” Rosenior admits. A positive result at the Parc des Princes on Saturday night would certainly bolster Rosenior’s own credentials, and could go some way towards winning over the BlueCo-sceptic Strasbourg supporters.
