Steven Gerrard has sharply criticized Chelsea’s ownership, stating they can ‘never be trusted’ again following the dismissal of manager Liam Rosenior earlier this week.

Chelsea faced Leeds United in the FA Cup semi-final at Wembley on Sunday at 3pm, with Calum McFarlane taking charge on an interim basis after Rosenior’s departure on Wednesday.

Chelsea’s Official Statement on Rosenior’s Exit

A Chelsea FC statement explained: “This has not been a decision the Club has taken lightly, however recent results and performances have fallen below the necessary standards with still so much more to play for this season. Everyone at Chelsea FC wishes Liam every success in the future.”

Pundits Condemn Handling of Situation

During TNT Sports’ FA Cup coverage, Joe Cole and Gerrard voiced strong disapproval of how Chelsea managed Rosenior’s exit, especially after publicly supporting him just days earlier.

Cole highlighted the poor timing: “The way the whole thing was handled – he was given the vote of confidence then three days later he’s gone – we don’t know whether Liam Rosenior is a top manager or not.”

“Because he wasn’t given the opportunity. For me, what he’s done at Chelsea has no bearing on his ability as a manager. Because it seems like he was in there and constantly fighting against it, trying to get a tune out of the players.”

This came after co-owner Behdad Eghbali’s recent comment: “We’ve had a tough past five, six matches, but I think we’re behind Liam. Of course, it’s a results business but we think he can be successful long term.”

Cole continued: “That’s the thing that frustrates Chelsea fans, because you get so much PR around big clubs, ‘this is what we are, this is what we are, long-term plan’ and we’ve sacked five managers.”

“‘We back the manager’ and sack him in three days’ time. Fans are not stupid, there’s too much social media information and everything, you can’t just come out with these lines.”

Gerrard’s Fierce Response

Gerrard echoed the sentiment: “You’d never trust them again. Anything they say moving forward now, from a Chelsea point of view, ex-players, blah blah blah – you go, ‘are you gonna believe that?’ They’re saying stuff like that and sacking the manager six days later.”

“I think a lot of players are hiding behind the owners and the manager losing his job. My experience of playing against Chelsea, it’s one of the hardest games I’ve ever played in.”

The Liverpool legend also challenged the current squad’s mindset: “You know, let’s not put too much emphasis on owners and managers losing their job – Chelsea have got so many good players. But where’s the identity, where’s the fight, where’s the spirit?”

“When I played against these guys, and this is no word of a lie, they had top world class talent. So’s that group of players. But you know what they had? They had a winning mentality. They had the fight, had the spirit, right to the end, to the final whistle.”

“And you knew, win, lose or draw you’d come off after playing them group of players: [Frank] Lampards, [John] Terrys, [Claude] Makeleles, [Didier] Drogbas, you knew you were in a game, forget the result. None of them players hid behind a manager or an ownership.”

“In today’s world, we get involved in social media: ‘the owner’s said blah blah blah’, giving a six-year contract blah blah blah. You’re a footballer, forget all that. Go and play for your team and your badge and your supporters.”

“These players are not doing it enough. They’ve lost seven games out of the last eight, they’ve only won against Port Vale. That’s not Chelsea. He’ll [Cole] tell you, he probably won’t say it because he’s humble, but the Chelsea team that I played against and the majority of the one I’ve watched over the last 10 years, there’s an identity, there’s a fight, there’s a spirit, there’s a style. It’s gone of late. If you want to blame Liam Rosenior for that, fine. But not for me. Not for me.”