Liam Rosenior has revealed Chelsea have identified and dealt with the mole who leaked their team news before both of their Champions League losses to Paris Saint-Germain.
Before their last-16 first-leg away at PSG, Rosenior’s entire XI was published by the French media. Likewise, the build-up to their second leg saw news break that Wesley Fofana would not be starting as Trevoh Chalobah and Jorrel Hato were a centre-back pairing instead.
Both were correctly called, and following a club probe, they have found the culprit. Daily Mail Sport understands the leaks did not come directly from a player and is regarded as external by Rosenior and Chelsea.
‘We know (who it is),’ Rosenior told us at his pre-Everton press conference. ‘It's not come from any place of malicious intent to me or to the team. We know where it's come from and we've dealt with the situation.’
When asked directly, Chelsea did not name the mole.
It was after their 8-2 loss on aggregate to PSG that Enzo Fernandez, who wore the captain’s armband in the second leg, appeared to cast doubt on his future. The Argentinian suggested he did not know whether he would still be at Chelsea next season.
On Fernandez, Rosenior said: ‘I had a great conversation with Enzo at length this morning before training. Not just about his comments – just how he was feeling, how as a team we can improve.
‘He's one of the captains of the club. What I would say is that he made it really, really clear to me how happy he is here at this club, how much he wants to win, how passionate he is for us to be successful. He also said that in translation and in emotion, things get misconstrued in what he said. For me, he's fully committed to this group, he's fully committed to winning here.’
Rosenior revealed his own team news before Chelsea’s trip to Everton on Saturday, including how Trevoh Chalobah is set to miss the next set weeks with his ankle injury. Images showed Chalobah’s foot practically facing the wrong way, but the Blues are glad that his injury is not as bad as they first feared. Meanwhile, Filip Jorgensen will also be sidelined for weeks after undergoing a minor operation on his groin.
Chelsea captain Reece James will not be available against Everton due to his hamstring issue, but Rosenior said: ‘It’s not serious.’