Despite being a big admirer of his, former player turned pundit Stan Collymore has admitted that Graham Potter may not be the man to lead Chelsea’s new era.
Making the decision to leave Brighton and Hove Albion in favour of a switch to Stamford Bridge last September following Thomas Tuchel’s surprise sacking, Potter, 47, has been tasked with leading the Blues’ new era, which has seen American billionaire owner Todd Boehly pump over half-a-billion-pounds into the playing squad (Transfermarkt).
Not only have Chelsea signed multiple new players, including breaking the British transfer record after signing midfielder Enzo Fernandez from Benfica for an eye-watering £106m (Sky Sports), but there has also been a lot of emphasis placed on developing the club’s youth talent, and Potter must now find a way to get the whole squad firing.
It hasn’t quite happened yet though. The 47-year-old has won just five of his first 18 Premier League matches with his side’s latest loss being a 1-0 defeat at home against bottom-of-the-table Southampton.
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Following last weekend’s abysmal result, which not only meant Chelsea failed to win any points but also saw the side put in a poor performance, Collymore has admitted that Potter is under heaps of pressure.
“Graham Potter is under pressure,” Collymore said in an exclusive interview.
“He will know that no matter how Todd Boehly dresses it up, losing at home to Southampton is not acceptable. It’s now getting to the stage where Boehly will be asking himself whether or not to give into the fan’s demands to bring in someone new or not. He’ll be in conflict with himself because I think he probably recognises that the days of hiring and firing are over and it’s not a sustainable model like it may have been in the past.”
Going on to assess Boehly’s long-term vision for the club, Collymore noted that even though patience will be required, there is only so long the American can wait before wielding the axe.
“Boehly definitely wants to build a long-term project but admittedly, it may not be Potter that leads that project,” the ex-pro added.
“I really want him to work it out there, but he’s at a disadvantage by not being the same kind of character as Klopp and Guardiola, who can always talk themselves out of a hole whenever they come under fire.
“One thing I will say though is Chelsea’s horrendous form is definitely a symptom of a club in major transition. It’s obviously going to take time but the question is how much time, and with a tricky run of games coming up against Tottenham and Leeds before a huge Champions League knockout second leg against Dortmund, they must improve and quickly.”