Chelsea ‘manager plan revealed’ after ‘board talks’ about Potter; two defenders to be handed ‘new role’

Chelsea are reportedly set to ‘keep faith’ in Graham Potter despite their ongoing poor form as the club’s board ‘sympathise’ with the head coach.

Potter is under increasing pressure even though he only took over at Stamford Bridge last September. He has only managed to win nine of his 26 games in charge across all competitions.

The Blues are without a win in six games and they have only won two of their last 15 games in the Premier League. This form leaves them tenth in the table and they are 14 points adrift of fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur.

Despite this, Football Insider are reporting that the club’s ‘manager plan’ is to stick with Potter following fresh ‘board talks’.

Co-owner Todd Boehly considers Potter to be ‘part of the long-term plan at Chelsea and is keen to give him time to turn things around’.

The board are said to ‘sympathise’ with Potter as they recognise that it is a ‘difficult task’ to take over a club during a season.

The report adds: ‘While they remain committed to Potter, Chelsea are aware that no top managers would be willing to step in and replace him at this point of the season.

‘The club also recognise that hiring a top managerial target will be incredibly difficult with Champions League qualification looking increasingly unlikely this season.’

A separate report from Football Insider claims ‘Chelsea are set to unveil a new tactical system with Reece James to be handed a new role’.

Potter has often opted for a 4-2-3-1 formation at Chelsea but he is now ‘preparing to experiment with a 3-4-3 system in future matches’.

The head coach previously had success with this system at Brighton. When he tried to adopt this set-up at Chelsea, he ‘faced opposition from Thiago Silva who prefers a back four’.

With this new set-up, James and Ben Chilwell will be ‘handed more advanced roles’ in the hope that more chances will be created for the club’s attackers.

Former Chelsea defender Mario Melchiot disagrees with the club’s board as he feels that Potter should be sacked as a result of their dire form.

“In my time, Graham Potter wouldn’t last, that’s all I can say.

“When I was playing, no. I feel sorry for him, I know everyone is talking about him, but with results like this… I have to be sorry and make a change.

“He talks about the All or Nothing [documentary] of Arsenal, little things that are not necessary.

“What is important now is picking your starting XI and sticking with it. Then you focus on the details.”

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