Following Premier League defeat at Stamford Bridge to mid-table and mid-level threat side Aston Villa, former Chelsea boss Graham Potter attempted to justify another unacceptable Blues loss.
‘Potter does not have a conducive plan’. ‘Potter is out of his depth at a big club such as Chelsea’. This is paraphrasing of statements you’ll frequently see on social media. Even I made a very similar tweet on Saturday evening after the Blues lost to fellow 2022/23 strugglers Aston Villa. Although, the Villans now have some type of identity under the mercurial and mysterious looking but probably completely readable Unai Emery.
The now ex-CFC head coach has a similar feel to him: a mid-level top tier football manager whose reputation arguably exceeds his skill set. That is certainly with respect to the EPL. What I am saying is, Potter would be better placed at a mid-table yet decent sized outfit like Aston Villa, whilst acknowledging their history so not to upset their supporters etcetera, etcetera. The former Ostersunds, Swansea City and Brighton & Hove Albion gaffer would be better suited with a smaller squad with whom he must extract the best from. Not an overloaded roster of majority individuals. Meanwhile he can devise little stratagems to gain the upper hand on the huge teams – like Chelsea. Successful managing the preeminent seems an unlikely marriage for the 47-year-old.
What Graham Potter said to justify unacceptable Chelsea loss
That said, it was obviously sporting to give the gaffer one final a chance to explain himself. I mean, Villa are a decent outfit once again, but the Blues losing by two-goals without scoring in reply is almost unheard of at the Bridge. Nevertheless, regarding the awful mixup between the non-Chelsea-standard Marc Cucurella and the equally unreliable Kalidou Koulibaly, Potter said that miscommunication occurs in football and he should take responsibility for it. How strange; I assume he means the personnel were out of position. More quotes from FL are below:
"Since you’ve arrived, you’ve changed formation and players a few times. What is the biggest factor why Chelsea haven’t been consistent this season?The formation has been the same for the last few weeks. It’s not for me to talk through the story of the season now. We came in in September. There’s a lot of games, a lot of injuries, it’s difficult to have the consistency you want because you’re playing a lot of matches. Today is a setback, of course it is because we’re disappointed to lose and at home we can feel the pain of the supporters. We have to dust ourselves down and go again on Tuesday.Full football.london transcript"