Potter sack hinted ‘this week’ as Chelsea boss could’ve departed ‘on three occasions’ in another situation
Former Chelsea man Tony Cascarino feels Graham Potter could be sacked “this week” as he admits under Roman Abramovich he’d have gone on “three different occasions by now”.
It’s been an underwhelming season so far for the Blues. They’re currently 10th in the Premier League and way off the fight for a top-four spot.
They’ve spent north of £500million since Todd Boehly bought the club ahead of the summer transfer window. However, a lot of those signings are yet to hit the ground running.
Eight signings were made in January and Potter admitted having little to do with one of them: Mykhaylo Mudryk. Whether or not he had a big hand in any of the others, then, is also questionable.
The manager was only appointed to his role in September. While he’s got what feels like hundreds of players to call upon he’s in a tough situation of trying to figure out who are his best options among them.
And since the beginning of January, the Blues have won just once in all competitions. They’ve also lost to local rivals Fulham, as well as bottom-placed Southampton during that run.
Potter’s job security has come into question of late and Gabby Agbonlahor feels he “should be sacked”. While Chelsea have already dismissed one manager in Thomas Tuchel this season, it wouldn’t be a massive surprise if Potter followed.
Former Blues man Cascarino has added fuel to that fire, admitting in another situation he’d already have been gone a few times over.
“If Roman Abramovich was still the Chelsea owner, Graham Potter would have been sacked on three different occasions by now,” he said in The Times.
“His side’s first-half performance in the 1-0 home defeat by Southampton was abysmal, and losing to the Premier League’s bottom club is simply unacceptable.”
Furthermore, with a new regime in place, Cascarino believes Potter’s managerial career at Chelsea might be on its last legs, with chairman Todd Boehly perhaps ready to pull the trigger sooner rather than later.
“Even with Toddy Boehly’s ownership group now running Chelsea, I cannot see Potter being afforded much more patience. The club have spent more than £500 million since last summer, bringing in some of the best talent around,” he added.
“Their squad is so deep that when I am at Stamford Bridge for a game, I sometimes bump into players not in the matchday squad that would walk into the starting XI of most teams in the country.
“Boehly is clearly in a hurry to get Chelsea competing for titles again, so why would he be content to allow mediocrity under Potter? I would not be surprised if the head coach was dismissed this week.”