Strasbourg president Marc Keller hits back over Liam Rosenior departure

RC Strasbourg president Marc Keller has hit back at criticism of his role in Liam Rosenior’s controversial departure to Chelsea.

Speaking at a press conference in which Gary O’Neil, the former Bournemouth and Wolves manager, was unveiled as the Alsace club’s new head coach, Keller addressed demands for him to step down over Rosenior’s move to Stamford Bridge, which supporters have branded “another humiliating step in Racing’s subservience to Chelsea”. 

Strasbourg, whose captain Emmanuel Emegha will also move to Chelsea next season,  is part of BlueCo, the investment vehicle that also controls the Premier League club. 

Keller, 57, said that while he could understand fans’ disgruntlement at Rosenior’s mid-season departure, circumstances had forced his hand.

Strasbourg president Marc Keller: ‘Do you think this pleases me?’

“It wasn’t planned, so I can understand the surprise and a bit of disappointment for some of our supporters,” said Keller. “Do you think this pleases me? No. it was a situation that was neither planned nor desired by anyone at the club.

“Having said that, I’ve been in management for 25 years, and things happen in football where you have to adapt.

“When you’re confronted with a coach that has the chance to go to the Premier League, at good clubs, if it’s Chelsea or elsewhere, it has to be on the table, you have to sit down and talk. Because Liam Rosenior also wanted to go to the Premier League.

“At the beginning of the season he came to see me, because he had received offers from Champions League clubs. After discussions with the owners, we decided instead to extend his contract; our wish was to keep him. 

Marc Keller: ‘Liam Rosenior asked to go’

“But things can change, and when I spoke with Liam again, he asked to [go].”

Keller, a former France international, played 149 games for Strasbourg and later became the club’s chief executive. He led a consortium that purchased Strasbourg in 2012, overseeing a series of promotions from the fourth tier to Ligue 1 before selling the club to BlueCo two and a half years ago while staying on as president. 

“[Rosenior] wanted to be closer to his family,” Keller added. “Given this situation, my position as president is extremely clear: we must adapt. So I told him, ‘You can start discussions.’”

How far Keller’s words will placate a fanbase increasingly disenchanted by the club’s relationship with Chelsea remains to be seen. 

No sooner had Rosenior confirmed his intention to leave on Tuesday than the FSRCS, a Strasbourg supporters’ federation, issued a statement condemning the situation and demanding Keller’s head.

‘Another humiliating step in Racing’s subservience to Chelsea’

“The transfer of Liam Rosenior marks another humiliating step in Racing’s subservience to Chelsea,” read the statement. “For two and a half years, along with others, we have been trying to raise the alarm about this. 

“The problem goes far beyond the mid-season sporting impact and the ambitions of a young coach. It is structural; the future of French club football is at stake. 

“Every additional contortion by Marc Keller, every extra minute spent at the helm of the club, is an insult to the tremendous work accomplished before 2023. What was seen by many as an outrageous move last September increasingly looks like sound advice: he must leave. Now.”

While Keller must now wait to see how the situation evolves, O’Neil, who happily does not speak French, used his unveiling to look forward with optimism.

“Liam Rosenior has done a very good job here,” said O’Neil. “From these foundations, it’s an opportunity for me that is fantastic, with a very high-quality team. 

“I arrive at a football club that is only going in one direction: upwards, towards progression.”