Paris FC are one of three teams still unbeaten in Ligue 1 after five games of the new season.
The capital club sit third in the table with three wins and two draws and are just two points behind early leaders Monaco. It’s a big improvement from their 11th-placed finish last season, in which they lost more games than they won.
And Liam Rosenior has to take some of the plaudits for the change. The Englishman received a lot of criticism for his failed stint as Chelsea manager, with 11 wins, two draws and 10 defeats from 23 matches. Seven of those defeats came in Rosenior’s final eight matches, while four of victories (including his last) were against lower-league opposition.
But, now back in France, Rosenior is re-finding his feet and starting to rebuild his reputation.
How Rosenior has improved Paris FC
Defence-first mindset
One of the biggest criticisms of Rosenior at Chelsea was the Blues’ defensive setup. While it has since proven to be a deeper issue at Stamford Bridge, some of the faults are still attributed to Rosenior. But he has his Paris FC backline in top shape.
Only Lyon (two) have conceded fewer goals than Paris FC’s three in Ligue 1 this season, with the capital club keeping a joint-high three clean sheets. And it’s because they haven’t been allowing their opponents many chances to test their goal. Rosenior’s side have faced just 48 shots with only 13 on target, both the least in Ligue 1 this season. Paris FC also come out on top for fewest Expected Goals Conceded at just 3.32. Brest are the second-lowest, with 5.79 xGC.
All metrics have improved from last season, with Paris FC averaging 1.64 xGC in Ligue 1 last season — the fourth-worst in the division. That’s dropped to just 0.67 so far in 2026/27. Their shots faced per game has also dropped from 12.44 to 9.6. So, why aren’t Paris FC facing as many shots?
Ball-winning improvements
Rosenior has been working on his side’s ball-winning, something Paris FC struggled with last season. And he hasn’t used any new personnel to achieve it. Paris FC ranked 13th in Ligue 1 last season for their tackles per game, at 15.68, with an improvement to 19.6 per match in 2026/27. The capital club currently rank second in the top flight for their tackles. Their right-hand side has been key to this. Pierre Lees-Melou still leads the way at Paris FC for tackles, but his average has jumped from 2.87 per 90 minutes to 4.0. Right-back Adama Camara has also seen an improvement from 2.4 tackles per 90 to 2.8.
There have been improvements in winning possession at both ends of the pitch, too. Although Paris FC still rank in the middle of the table for their possessions won in the attacking third per game, they have seen an increase from 3.59 last season to 4.2. The big difference is at the back, though. Despite allowing the ball to reach the defensive third more, Paris FC have been rock solid, winning possession 25 times per match in that area. It’s the highest in Ligue 1 and an increase from 20.56 possessions won in the defensive third per game last season.
Paris FC have also seen an improvement in their interceptions, rising from 7.79 per game to 10.2. Again this has been influenced at both ends of the pitch. Centre-back Samir Chergui ranks top at the club for his 2.33 interceptions per 90, with striker Lassine Sinayoko (1.45) sitting second. The latter was a summer signing, but he wasn’t making as many interceptions for Auxerre last season (0.84 per 90).
On-the-ball mentality
Although Rosenior hasn’t changed much in terms of Paris FC’s control of games, he has changed the way they utilise their possession.
Paris FC have looked to keep hold of the ball with frequent, short passes, playing with patience in the hopes of minimising their opponents’ threat. Averaging slightly less possession (down from 50.37% to 50.16%), Paris FC are averaging almost 100 more passes per game — from 467.88 to 566.8. The accuracy of these passes has improved too, with Paris FC completing just 397.12 passes per game last season, up to 502.8 in 2026/27. Rosenior’s side rank second in Ligue 1 for passes this season, behind only neighbours Paris Saint-Germain.
There has been a slight drop in final third pass attempts, down from 105.53 per game to 101.2, but that’s not a negative. Paris FC are being more considered with their passes, which has made them more accurate. The Parisians have averaged 77 completed final third passes per game this season, up slightly from 75.97.
And it’s not as if Paris FC are being completely negative. They are still averaging more forward passes per game than last season, and only 93.8 of their 566.8 attempted passes per match have been backwards. That’s only a slight increase in terms of percentage of total passes (16.55%, up from 16.07%).
Still room to improve
It will, unfortunately, take quite a lot for Rosenior’s Chelsea spell to be fully forgotten. Because that’s the way the football world works. But he’s certainly on the right track, particularly defensively. However, there’s still room for Rosenior to improve — particularly when it comes to his attack.
Paris FC have scored eight goals in Ligue 1 this season, the seventh-most in the league. Last season their 47 goals ranked Paris FC 10th in France’s top flight. While that has been an improvement, Paris FC’s finishing hasn’t been great. From 8.82 xG, Paris FC have registered 7.67 post-shot xG in Ligue 1. It means they’ve worsened their chances of scoring by -1.15 based on their shot placement.
That’s a regression from last season, when Paris FC’s shot placement actually improved their chances of scoring by +2.45 — the fourth-best in the league. When comparing per match, it’s a regression from +0.07 to -0.23.
Sinayoko isn’t to blame for that, but Paris FC are heavily reliant on their new striker at the moment. He has scored four of their eight goals, registering 3.59 xG and 3.69 post-shot xG — leading Paris FC in all three metrics. Three of those four goals came in one game, though. And Paris FC have failed to score in two of the three games in which Sinayoko has blanked. Ilan Kebbal (11) and Luca Koleosho (10) have looked to provide support from the wings in terms of shots, but they haven’t been testing opposition goalkeepers as much as Sinayoko.
Still, the foundations are there for Rosenior to build upon, pushing Paris FC to an unexpected European challenge.