Coaching Shuffle at Cobham: Filipe Coelho Heads to Strasbourg
Chelsea have confirmed the departure of Under-21s head coach Filipe Coelho, who has joined RC Strasbourg as assistant manager to Liam Rosenior. The move sees him remain under the BlueCo umbrella, with Strasbourg also owned by Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly.
Coelho, who joined from Estoril just last summer after time in Benfica’s youth system, made a notable impact at Cobham — guiding Chelsea’s PL2 side to third and overseeing a number of first-team debuts, including Shumaira Mheuka, Kiano Dyer, Harrison Murray-Campbell, Genesis Antwi, and Ato Ampah.
He now steps into senior football at Strasbourg, who narrowly missed out on Champions League qualification last season and will feature in the Conference League in 2025.
Replacing him at Chelsea is Calum McFarlane, formerly Southampton’s Under-21s coach and a familiar name in the Joe Shields and Enzo Maresca coaching network. He’ll be supported by Cobham alumni Andy Ross and James Simmonds.
Academy technical director Glenn van der Kraan praised Coelho’s brief but meaningful contribution:
“Filipe has influenced our football identity and held the highest standards every day. This is a fantastic next step in his career.”
Jack Francis, recently promoted to academy football operations director, added:
“Our culture of excellence applies to both players and staff. Filipe’s progression reflects that, and we wish him all the best.”
Change is ongoing at Cobham — but the pipeline of talent, both on and off the pitch, continues to deliver.
Coaching Shuffle at Cobham: Filipe Coelho Heads to Strasbourg
