While his complaints were in many ways justified, making them public was viewed as naive, with one dressing-room source simply saying: “That was not a good move.”
Turning on his players after the defeat by Brighton, Rosenior said: “It was unacceptable in every aspect of the game. Unacceptable in attitude. I keep coming out and defending the players, but that’s indefensible, that performance tonight. The manner of the goals we conceded, the amount of duels we lost, the lack of intensity in the team.”
Rosenior’s outburst had echoes of José Mourinho and Frank Lampard publicly attacking the Chelsea players before losing their jobs. Mourinho said he felt “betrayed” by his players following a defeat by Leicester City in 2015, while Lampard questioned his team’s desire after also losing to Leicester in 2021.
A source told Telegraph Sport: “Attacking the players in public never ends well, however valid some of the points might be. It’s very difficult to come back from.”