Rosenior has ‘taken more responsibility’ in Chelsea’s set-piece training

Liam Rosenior has taken on more responsibility for setting his Chelsea team up to defend set pieces, after admitting that conceding from corners has been a point of frustration in recent weeks.

Both goals conceded in Sunday’s 2-1 defeat against league leaders Arsenal came from corners, as did Burnley’s late equaliser at Stamford Bridge the week before.

Speaking ahead of a midweek trip to Aston Villa head coach Rosenior revealed he is now more involved in that aspect of training, alongside set-piece coach Bernardo Cueva.

“It’s not a laughing matter, because it’s a key thing we have to improve,” he explained.

“Every manager has a different idea about the way you attack and defend set plays. I will always be honest, I have taken more responsibility in the last week, because I know it’s something we need to improve.

“Bernardo has proven what a fantastic set-piece coach he is, in terms of our offensive output, it’s amongst the best in the league.

“It’s not just down to coaching, it’s down to mentality, down to focus and concentration.

“By the manager taking control of that, hopefully, from a mentality point of view, the value of that goes up, in terms of the way we work.”

Rosenior also offered an update on team news ahead of Wednesday’s trip to Villa.

Both Reece James and Cole Palmer, the latter of whom appeared to go down with a knock against Arsenal, are available.

Marc Cucurella, who has missed the past three games, could also make a return.

“Cucu is looking good, hopefully we can get him back involved, if not on Wednesday, then on Saturday,” Rosenior said.

Estevao, who has not featured since February’s win over Hull City in the FA Cup, is back running on the training pitch.

Romeo Lavia, who made his long-awaited return as a substitute in Sunday’s 2-1 loss, is also close to being in contention for a starting spot, Rosenior suggested.