11/01/2023
UNPOPULAR OPINION: CHELSEA FANS AND GRAHAM POTTER
After the back to back defeat to Manchester City, I have seen some Chelsea fans crying and clamouring for the sacking of Graham Potter but before you raise the placard for his sacking, read this.
Are you aware that under the "great" Tuchel, Chelsea was unable to defeat Graham Potter when he was the coach of Brighton?
The two of them met three(3) times and it was 0-0, 1-1 and 1-1 even when Tuchel had his trusted players like Kante and James available.
But here is this man without the full squad at his disposition of Tuchel or even without the full fitness of Kante and James who we all know that they were the engine room of Tuchel when he was the coach (only if you just want to deny it and I will prove it to you here)
Before I move to Tuchel's record with Pep Guardiola, let me bring to your hearing what Pep has to say about Tuchel even before he became a chelsea manager.
Pep had this to say about Potter while at Brighton:
"I am a big fan of Graham Potter. From the first time at Swansea, it was a joy to analyse his teams but also a concern when you play them.
"His players have the courage to play, they all know what to do. The first thing I would tell my players is: 'We have to be at a high level against them'."
He added:
"They have runners high and wide, it does not matter if they are wing-backs, full-backs or wingers. And after that, they create spaces for people in the middle.
"They press aggressive, all the things I would like as a spectator. I identify with his teams."
Clearly, when Pep spoke, he spoke about a manager whose work he had followed and analysed closely for many years.
You don't have to agree with him.
But you must agree that Pep knows enough, more than enough to applaud anyone.
Let us come to Tuchel's record against Man City.
Tuchel met Pep five times. Tuchel won 3 and he lost 2 and out of the three wins he had, he had the his best players available( Kante, James and Chilwell) in two of them available (James and Kante in the premier league played on May 8, 2021, all thanks for Alonso's goal at injury time)
Meanwhile, the two times Tuchel lost to Pep, he only had KANTE available in one of the match and the second one, he had both Kante and James available but James was stretched out injured at the early hours of the game.
This is to tell us that Tuchel built this team on some players and without the availability of these players, Chelsea hardly win matches.
You can go and check Chelsea stats under Tuchel, anytime James, Kante and Chilwell play together, chelsea always play well and even win matches comfortably but anytime James majorly is absent, Chelsea always struggle to win matches
And under Graham Potter, Chelsea have hardly had James in full fitness and the matches that James had participated in, Chelsea had better results even without the likes of Kante, Chelsea best midfielder and Chilwell, out best left wing back.
Todd Boehly knows all these. You can't sack a coach when you are aware that the key players in the team are injured even with 10 players out injured.
The only time you are all allowed to condemn Potter is when he has the likes of James, Kante and Chilwell back to full fitness and yet he is still loosing games, so by then, you are free to send him parking.
Always a blue!
Below is the stat of Graham Potter with Chelsea with JAMES and half fit CHILWELL and no Kante...
Credits: Premier League Taunts.
