There is no doubt he is facing huge challenges but his comments are not what supporters want to hear, and show a misunderstanding of the culture at the club. Chelsea fans are used to winners such as Jose Mourinho, Carlo Ancelotti, Antonio Conte and Thomas Tuchel.
Potter
talks about a period of “suffering” and “pain” but that is not the attitude
supporters expect from the manager of a club that wants to be challenging for
major trophies.
Tuchel
was an excellent communicator and understood what was expected. He spoke about
building a team that “nobody wants to play against” and used the uncertainty
around Roman Abramovich last year to create a siege mentality at Chelsea.
Solution needed: Under fire Graham Potter must stop
the rot at Chelsea… and quickly
Mourinho
exuded youthful charisma, arrogance and aggression, while Conte promised to
forge a “blazing inferno” when he was appointed. They all helped build a
culture that Chelsea fans enjoyed. When things did not go well, the manager was
quickly replaced and success with a new one soon followed.
Chelsea
won 21 trophies in 19 years under Abramovich, making them the most successful
club in England in that time. Excuses were not good enough in a hire-and-fire
culture, and that approach resulted in the most successful period in the club’s
history. Chelsea’s new owners want to do things differently post-Abramovich but
their faith in a long-term vision is being tested
They
insist Potter retains their full support. They have hired new senior staff in
almost every department across the club and have spent £300million in the
transfer market since their takeover last year. But, with Chelsea in 10th place
in the Premier League, supporters chanted for Abramovich and Tuchel during Sunday’s
4-0 FA Cup defeat at Manchester City.
Another
bad result on Thursday and things could turn ugly when Chelsea host Crystal
Palace on Sunday. On Wednesday, Potter attempted to explain what is going wrong
at Chelsea. He spoke about a leadership vacuum at Stamford Bridge.
*A defeatist attitude will not strike the right chord
with Chelsea supporters, who want authority, not excuses*
He said
he did not want sympathy over the size of the job he faces and in many aspects
he was right about the problems at Chelsea. Unfortunately, a defeatist attitude
will not strike the right chord with Chelsea supporters, who want authority,
not excuses.
Petr
Cech, Marina Granovskaia, Bruce Buck and Paulo Ferreira, had they still been at
the club, could have explained to Potter and the new owners what fans might
want to hear.
Instead,
supporters are getting respectful explanations from Potter, like describing
Manchester City as “top opponents” and saying facing Pep Guardiola’s side again
in the FA Cup at the weekend was “not the best fixture” for a side who are
struggling.
Back-to-back
defeats against City has left Chelsea’s season in tatters, and the atmosphere
in the dressing room is similar to the mood in the stands.
Players have faced criticism on social media, and
negativity has led to poor body language on the pitch. Chelsea are 10 points
off the top four and defeat on Thursday could all but end their Champions
League hopes.
“We are not downing tools or throwing in the towel,” said Potter. “We are still
ambitious. We want to win. We want to compete at the top of the Premier League.
That is what I am here for — we are trying to build a winning team and culture.
We are not there at the moment but need to keep working.”
Only a win at Craven Cottage will do for supporters but that will not be
easy against a Fulham side flying under Marco Silva and above the Blues in the
table
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