Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel (Picture: YouTube)John Obi Mikel has blasted Chelsea’s ‘absolutely crazy’ decision to sack Enzo Maresca and says his former club have gone ‘five steps backwards’ under Liam Rosenior. Chelsea finished fourth in the Premier League in Maresca’s first year and also won the Europa Conference League. But Chelsea blew leads at home in their last two games against relegation-battlers Leeds United and Burnley to slip three points behind top-four rivals Manchester United. Rosenior also failed to send Chelsea into the Carabao Cup final, losing 4-2 on aggregate to Premier League leaders Arsenal. Assessing Chelsea’s form under Rosenior, Obi Mikel said on his podcast: ‘It’s not convincing from Chelsea, not convincing.

Source: Metro February 24, 2026 23:24 UTC