'I would have booed us' - Liam Rosenior reacts to Chelsea fans' frustrations after Blues roar back to beat West Ham

Chelsea fell behind to Nuno Espirito Santo’s side after just seven minutes when Jarod Bowen’s deep cross evaded all in the Blues penalty area and crept in at the back post. The Portuguese coach was then in dreamland when Crysencio Summerville curled a wicked effort from the top of the box into the back of the net from an Aaron Wan-Bissaka cut-back. The half-time whistle prompted a wave of unhappy noises from the Stamford Bridge terraces.

Chelsea started the second-half strongly and were back on level terms after Joao Pedro’s close-range header and Marc Cucurella bundled home from inside the six-yard box. Fernandez then completed the comeback when he wrongfooted Alphonse Areola in the Hammers goal.

Tensions boiled and eventually spilt over when Cucurella was pushed over by Adam Traore, sparking a mass brawl. After a VAR check was required to dissect the mass of bodies toing and froing in a mass of waving limbs, Jean-Clair Todibo was given a red card for putting his hands on the throat of Pedro. Chelsea earned all three points, but it certainly wasn’t without difficulty.

Speaking after the game, Rosenior praised the fans and was understanding in their half-time frustration. He told reporters: “I have to say, the fans were magnificent in the second-half. I would have booed us in the first-half. Our performance was nowhere near the level it needed to be.

The new Blues boss is under pressure to win over his new fanbase and he admitted that only he can convince the Blues faithful that he is the right man for the job. He explained: “It's on me. I hope in time, they will say it's the best decision the club have ever made. I can't focus on that. They want to win trophies. I want that too. To have six wins from seven games, it's not a bad start.”

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Rosenior has made a good start to life at Stamford Bridge and remains in all cup competitions, but remains far off the title race and could be out of the Carabao Cup in a matter of days. The Blues travel to Arsenal on Tuesday needing to overturn a 3-2 defeat at home against Mikel Arteta’s side. It will not be an easy task to overhaul the deficit against the Gunners, who returned to winning ways on Saturday afternoon with a rampant 4-0 thrashing of Leeds United at Elland Road.

Chelsea have qualified for the round of 16 of the Champions League, with victory against Napoli in mid-week ensuring they finished in the top eight and avoided having to face a play-off game. The Blues could face one of Paris Saint-Germain, Newcastle, Qarabag or AS Monaco in their next fixture in the tournament.

Rosenior will take heart from the comeback victory and three points in the Premier League. The win takes them within six points of Manchester City and Aston Villa in second and third place, respectively, and will be pleased to keep their spot in the top four.

The race for the top five and a spot in next season’s Champions League campaign is intensifying with Liverpool and Manchester United also vying for a qualification spot. The Blues have also opened up a six-point advantage over both Everton and Fulham, to ease the pressure on Rosenior. Yet, the Blues boss will know there is a long way to go in the season and will have to keep up his good start.